Kamen Rider Chalice: The Pretty Cure Chronicles
by Dragon Seraphim
Summary: He just wanted to enjoy his vacation in Japan, pick up some Kamen Rider merchandise, see the new Precure movie, but a mysterious force hauls him into the Pretty Cure world, a new Battle Royale begins. Now, he fights as the mysterious Kamen Rider Chalice!
1. The Warrior Of Hearts

Ok, I knows I should be working on my Kamen Rider Shinryu fanfic but..let's just say that a lot of things I had planned got derailed..for various reasons. So, for the time being, I'm putting it on hiatus, and starting this new story I had planned for a while. Hopefully, I won't have to put this one on hiatus as well...

Oh yeah, I don't own Kamen Rider OR Pretty Cure. I do own my OC but that's about it. Also, this story was inspired by Ten-Faced Paladin's Forgotten Rider and Familiar Of ZerOOO. Both excellent stories, I highly suggest checking them out.

Kamen Rider Chalice: The Pretty Cure Chronicles

**Episode 1: A New Legend! Chalice, The Warrior Of Hearts, Is Born!**

Today was a good day, infact you can say it was a very good day. After spending more almost half the year working and saving up money from my job at the local grocery store, I finally had enough saved up to do something I've always wanted to do. And what was that thing one might ask? Well, it's nothing too special,except...

Take a trip to Japan! Otherwise known as the birth place of Anime and anything Tokusatsu.

..Ok,ok, laugh at me for being an otaku, get it out of your systems. I'll wait...

….You done? Good, and yes I'm an otaku, proud of it by the way, but don't think for a second that I'm a hard person to get along with, or that I have no social life whatsoever..which I do by the way! It's just..a number of my interactions with people..haven't been very good ones...

But forget about that. Like previously stated, I enjoy Anime and the works of Tokusatsu. I think the fact that I was exposed to Dragon Ball Z and Sailor Moon from a young age probaubly influenced my tastes though I've kinda grown out of those two, not that I hate them, quite the opposite really but..well,things change.

These days, I'm more into animes like Pretty Cure. Infact, that was another of my reasons for coming, besides the obvious one of wanting to explore Japanese culture. For they were showing a new Precure All Stars DX movie! That alone would've made this trip worth it.

Yes, I knew there had already been three movies, and as for my opinion on them? Well..First was really good, Second had some good points but was a bit of a letdown, and Three was Mind-Blowing Epic. I just hoped this new one would Wow me just as much as Number 3 had..plus being able to watch it on a big screen instead of a tiny monitor would just make things even more awesome.

That wasn't my only reason for coming to Japan though. I was hear to check out the new Kamen Rider convention. Right, I forgot to mention that Kamen Rider might be my favorite of all of Tokusatsu's work, with Ultraman and Casshern being close seconds.

..Dang, I haven't even bothered to introduce myself. Name's James Maxwell, I'm about 5 foot,11 inches and in my mid-to-late teens in terms of age. My hair is short and colored brown-black with brown eyes. I don't tend to wear the same outfits for more than one day.

For today though, I wore a grey shirt with black pants and shoes with a black hooded jacket. Much of my first day in Japan was spent exploring and getting to see the sights. I had spent much of the flight over studying up on the language and had a decent understanding.

That was my first day, my second was spent at the Kamen Rider Convention which,for some strange reason, was located right across from where they were showing the new Precure movie. Oh well.

My time at the convention was well-spent and I came away with some sweet merchandise. Namely, the four Rider Belts from Kamen Rider Blade AND A boxed set of every single Rouze Card! Even the limited edition Joker was included along with Kerberos..again, for some reason.

..Crap, I just went and spoiled a part of the plot for people who haven't watched, didn't I?

Ah well, what's done is done. Now that I had finished with the convention for the day it was time to head for the movies..or that's what I was intending to do when things took a turn for the bizarre,mixed with the weird.

A weird ringing sound went off in my head,almost like the kind a Rider from Ryuki would hear when there was a Mirror Monster nearby, but how could this be happening? I looked all around, hoping to see someone having problems with their Ipods or electronic devices. A malfunction in one would likely explain what I was hearing.

Nothing. There was nothing. The ringing slowly faded and I shook my head."Must've been my imagination playing tricks on me." I was about to walk off to the movies,when I felt a voice speak in my head. It was a quiet voice, and I couldn't tell if it was male or female. To say it creeped me out would be an understatement.

_The wheels of fate have begun to turn_, it said.

I spun around, searching desperately for the source."Who's there? Where are you?"

_A new Battle Royale is about to begin_, the voice announced.

That made my eyes widen in shock. The Battle Royale was that thing where all the Undead fought each other to have their wish granted!

"T-The Battle Royale?" I muttered."N-No! This can't be happening!"

But the voice went on, _Gather your courage,young one, for you too must stand and fight._

I protested."No! I...I won't! You can't! People will die! How can you be ok with that?" By now, the few people around were starting to stare, as it appeared I was yelling at thin air.

_Survival Of The Fittest_, the voice calmly replied. _No being can fight against the natural order._

That was enough to get my blood boiling. Whoever this voice was it didn't seem to be the slightest bit concerned with the fact that innocent lives were gonna be destroyed just to satisfy the terms of some twisted game...That is, if the voice was actually real and I wasn't just in crazy town.

Disembodied voice seemed to read my mind, _A shift in reality will soon occur, prepare yourself._

Oh yeah, I was definitely not imagining things."P-Prepare myself? With what?"

Instead of answering, the voice spoke once more,_Choose your power and your alliances wisely, for they may place a crucial role in your fate._

With that, the voice faded, leaving me with a deep sinking feeling in my gut.

Plus, it had said that a "shift in reality" would occur.

The only question was...When?

* * *

><p><em>In an entirely different universe, floating through the empty void of space, was a monstrous cloud of dark power. The cloud drifted through the stars with what seemed to be no purpose, but within that evil energy, memories played out like a movie.<em>

_Humans, Girls, one clad in black, the other in white,one with short hair, the other with long hair. With them, a third being, one radiant with HER light. Beautiful yet blinding, guiding yet destructive, and so overwhelming in its magnitude as the cloud remembered the agony of defeat..again and again._

_Anger,rage,sorrow, and a whole swarm of other negative emotions swelled up in it. This would not do. It would find a way to make them pay, they would suffer for their insolence and transgressions. Once the interlopers were out of the way there would be nothing that could stop the Darkness from reigning supreme over all worlds!_

_First though, it needed power. What the cloud had now was great, but trivial compared to what it once wielded. Luckily, the mass of energy saw something in the distance. More clouds, remnants of negative energy, each with massive power on their own. _

_The cloud called out to them and they understood. They each shared a common goal: The complete and total annihilation of those who had reduced them to this state, the Pretty Cure._

_Separate, they wouldn't stand a chance..but together..together they could crush them like the tiny ants they truly clouds began to swirl together as one, their energies combining to form something unstoppable,all-powerful, a God of Darkness._

_From the fusion of clouds came a monstrous vortex, embodying the will of the dark itself._

_A titanic roar echoed across the cosmos, the power behind it enough to briefly send a ripple through reality. A pulse of energy breached the ripple before it vanished._

_The vortex floated there, relishing its new power..and yet knew that it wasn't enough.._

_It needed to plan,wait..wait for a time when the enemy would drop its guard and be vulnerable._

_For now, it would wait...and indulge in its power..._

* * *

><p>Ok, on a scale of one to ten on the weirdness scale, I'd have to give what just happened a frekkin 1000. Seriously, how often do you hear voices without a body telling you you're gonna take part in some big huge tournament where the loss of innocent lives was acceptable?<p>

Yeah, you don't. I had spent the last five minutes pacing back and forth, ignoring weird looks from people and trying to rationalize what just happened."Maybe I hit my head..or I'm still in bed and got one of those lucid dreams..can't be drugs or alcohol since I don't take either.

With a deep sigh, I took a seat on a bench and watched the sky, it was getting dark and the movie was gonna be starting soon. Maybe I should just ignore what happened and-Was that a crack in the sky?

I rubbed my eyes and studied it closer. Yep, definitely a crack, one made up of black jagged lines..and it was growing!

My jaw dropped at the sight. "W-What is that?" Was this the distortion that voice had mentioned?

If so, I wasn't sticking around. I turned to go..but my legs were stiff."Huh?" I struggled against the stiffness but it felt like my legs were slabs of concrete. "I...can't...move.."

The crack grew and grew until it covered the better part of the sky, then it shattered with the sound of broken glass, revealing a giant dark tunnel. Gusts of wind picked up, really strong too, and I felt myself

being pulled off the ground.

"WHOA!"I screamed but I couldn't fight. My bag went flying into the vortex first."NO!" I couldn't believe that after all my hard work, I was gonna lose the mementos of my trip! Or that's what I thought until I too was sucked up through the air and into the vortex.

The black tunnel stretched on for what seemed like forever. In the distance though, I saw the Belts just floating there and the Rouze Cards were out of their packaging, shooting off into darkness one by one. I knew I had to act fast, there'd be time to get logical later.

I closed in on the belts yet they seemed to be pulling away from me. I don't know how, but I knew I may only be able to grab one, so I had to choose wisely. But which do I save? Blade? Garren's? Leangle's? Or Chalice's?

Blade was cool with his sword and stuff but he lacked long-range capabilities. Garren was an expert at fighting from a distance and his melee attacks were decent but he lacked defense. Leangle had good reach with his weapon and could hit hard,plus he could get the Undead to fight for him..but that Ace..it sent shivers up my spine.

That left only one option: Chalice. Badass design, versatile in that he can fight close up or far away, the ability to regenerate from wounds and an overall formidable Rider. Deciding he was my man, I grabbed hold of the buckle..and a searing heat shot through me.

To say it was painful would be an understatement. Granted, what I was feeling wasn't unbearable and wasn't the worst pain I ever felt, but it still hurt. As if an invisible signal went off, one of the glowing cards shot straight into my body while my hand moved to grab hold of two others.

Despite the heat, I was still holding the belt, and watched as the other three disappeared into the void, along with all the other Rouze Cards. I didn't have time to think of much else cause at that moment my head started to feel faint and my vision blurred.

..Everything..was getting so...dizzy...

* * *

><p><em>Walking down the street in a town similar to Tokyo were a pair of girls. One had short tomboyish brown hair with slightly tanned skin and brown eyes, walking by her was a girl with white skin and long navy blue,almost jet black hair with dark blue eyes. Both were dressed in what appeared to be school uniforms and chatting. These were Nagisa and Honoka, otherwise known as Cure Black and Cure White, warriors of Pretty Cure.<em>

_Nagisa groaned while stretching her arms."Oh man! That test was so long and boring!"_

_Honoka giggled."I guess it's a good thing I helped you study the night before."_

_The tomboy groaned again."Yeah, but you didn't have to be so pushy about it."_

_Her friend smiled and took hold of her hand."You knows I only does it cause I care about you."_

_Nagisa sighed."I know, I know." She pouted."Doesn't change the fact the test was so boring."_

_A little phone poked its head out of her pocket and opened to reveal a smirking yellow bear."You really should be more like Honoka-mepo. She doesn't waste all her time staring at boys and playing sports. She gets things done-mepo."_

_She flared up at this,gnarling teeth."What was that?" The phone gulped and vanished back into her pocket as she reached in a hand and pulled out the yellow bear before yanking on his cheeks."I'll teach you to make fun of me,Mepple!"_

_The dark-haired girl smiled at the scene and shook her head."Those two never change."_

_A pink rabbit head poked out of her pocket,beaming."And I don't think we'd want them any other way, would you-mipo?"_

_Honoka gently rubbed her fairy's head."No, I wouldn't."_

_Nagisa finished messing with Mepple and stuffed him back into her pocket before turning to her best friend."So, feel like getting some Takoyaki from Hikari and Akane-san's wagon?" She had that look that bordered on pleading._

_Honoka always found it cute,she laughed."When you're asking me with a face like that, how can I say no?"_

_A cheer came up from the girl as she grabbed her friend's hand,"Honoka, you're the best! Come on! Let's-" But before they could go anywhere, a weird rumble came from above them, making both stop and look up._

"_Was that..thunder?",asked Nagisa._

_Honoka frowned,"The weather report never said anything about a storm.." The sky was cloudy but not the grey kind that was associated with rain._

_Mepple popped out again,worried."Nagisa! I sense something coming this way!"_

"_Eh?" gaped the tomboy. "You mean..from the sky?" He nodded._

"_Could it be another remnant of the Dark Zone..?" wondered aloud Honoka,trying to remain calm._

"_No..this doesn't feel like them.." muttered Mipple."It feels...similar though-mipo."_

"_Similar?" The white Cure glanced down at her fairy, who nodded._

_More rumbles started up as flashes of light could be seen in the clouds, from high up a massive ripple appeared in the sky, from it shot out what appeared to be dozens of glowing meteors that seemed to hold a humanoid figure within each one..though the meteors were too far out of distance to accurately make out any details._

_Most of the meteors scattered far into the distance..but a couple landed not too far out of town. The ripple too soon vanished after depositing its package. _

_Both girls only stood there, staring in awe of what they just witnessed. Nagisa was first to speak."Ok...anybody else here got a serious case of deja-vu?" _

_Her partner nodded,still in shock of this event."Yeah, a meteor shower happened the night we became Pretty Cure.." She put a finger to her chin."But..what could this mean?"_

"_Maybe some new Pretty Cure will be born?" offered the brunette in a hopeful tone._

"_It's possible-mepo.." acknowledged Mepple, though from the way he said it, one could tell he wasn't too sure. _

_That's when Honoka realized something."Oh! Didn't a couple of them fall not too far from us?"_

_Nagisa's eyes shot open."Right! We should check it out," She added with a grin."But let's make it quick, I don't wanna miss Akane-san's takoyaki."_

_The brainy girl rolled her eyes but smiled."Ok," The two held hands and pulled out their HeartFul Communes. _

_They shouted together."Dual Aurora Wave!" Both were engulfed by a rainbow-colored beam of energy and emerged as their Cure selves._

"_Emissary Of Light, Cure Black!"_

"_Emissary Of Light, Cure White!"_

"_We Are Pretty Cure!" The duo made their way to the rooftops and took off, heading for where they'd seen the light fall, hoping that what they'd find would be something wonderful._

_Nagisa had been right..something HAD been born..but it definitely wasn't a new Pretty Cure..._

* * *

><p>I don't know how long I had lost consciousness. Could've been a few minutes, a couple of hours, maybe even a day or two. Regardless of the time I'd been out, I eventually came to though it took a few seconds for my sight to adjust and the feeling in my body to return.<p>

The first thing I felt was the bed of soft grass I had been lying on...that couldn't be right. I was just in the middle of town, going to see that new Precure movie..wait, why was the sun so bright?

I shut my eyes from the light and shielded myself by using an arm. Glancing side to side, I noticed the field of grass also included wild flowers and stretched on over a big hill. Should mention that the flowers seemed to have..an almost animated quality, like someone had drawn on them. You had to study it closely, but it was there.

With my sight having adjusted fully, it came back to me. Scowling, I growled."Darn,blasted disembodied voice..if I ever find out who that belongs to, I'm kicking their ass."

Deciding that sitting around, moping and complaining wouldn't solve anything, I slowly got to my feet..only to feel an odd weight around my waist."Huh?" Glancing down, I saw something that nearly made me faint...again.

A silver belt with a rectangular gold buckle that had a silver rim. Four green dots, one in each corner along with a red heart-shaped emblem on the front that had a slit running down the middle for something to be slashed through.

"C-Chalice's Belt?" I pinched myself but I didn't wake up from this lucid dream. Trying to control my excitement, I decided to test the belt. First, I tugged and pulled on the thing but it wouldn't come off. Ok, either somebody had used super-glue to keep it stuck..or this was genuine.

Second test, I focused my will and the belt shimmered before vanishing."Whoa." With but a thought, it returned to my waist. Oh yeah, I was getting more and more certain that this was happening.

Of course, that brought up another fact..one that unnerved me a little. This belt..Hajime wore this belt..but only the Joker Undead had this belt..which meant..if this was real..then I was a Joker too!

"So that's the card that went into my body.." I lowered my head. Oh sure, being immortal was great and all but only if you had something worth spending eternity on..that and you couldn't have a lasting relationship cause everyone you know will one day turn to dust.

_You are not an Undead, at least not completely. _That made me look up and search around. That voice..it wasn't the same one as before, but all of a sudden, I didn't feel so bad about my situation.

Instictively, I reached into my pocket and felt something. Pulling it out, I noticed it was cards, two of them. One depicted a preying mantis inside a jeweled heart with the words Category Ace written on the side. The other depicted a human figure with a red heart in their chest, the words Category Two Of Hearts was engraved on the edge.

"Category Ace Of Hearts, Mantis Undead..Category Two, Human Undead." I muttered to myself. These were Chalice's transformation cards. That's when a wicked idea struck me. I glanced down at my belt and then at the Ace.

"Chalice..will you..lend me your power?" For a moment, the card became warm in my fingers, as if it was acknowledging me.

I smiled confidently."Ok, Let's go," I brought the card to the slit in my buckle and said the one word I've always wanted to say since I first started watching Kamen Rider."Henshin!" I slashed.

The belt announced in a robotic voice."**Change."**

Starting from the buckle, that familiar black static energy spread out across my form and covered every square inch, from my fingertips to my head and face. The energy distorted before dispelling,revealing my Rider self and damn, did I look and feel cool.

My new form was composed of a full-form black bodysuit with silver gauntlets and grey boots with gold lines running along the legs and arms. A reinforced silver chestplate covered my torso area, the armor had red markings along the edge. Black shoulderpads with gold lining covered my shoulders, a holster was attached to my belt which held Chalice's cards. My head and face were concealed by a black helmet with a red heart-shaped visor and a silver mouthpiece with two long grey metallic horns sticking up out of it.

Like I said before, damn cool. This was Kamen Rider Chalice. I flexed my hand and took a few steps just to test the armor out. Sure enough, this was the real deal. The power surged through me, no wonder my new self was named "Chalice The Legendary". I felt like I could take on the world, though whether that was the Mantis Undead's fighting instincts kicking in or my own fanboyism talking was anyone's guess.

Reaching a hand behind me, I pulled out the Chalice Arrow. It had the form of a bow that could fire powerful energy bolts but had blades attached that were excellent for close-range combat or for dealing with an enemy that had a melee weapon. A fearsome weapon for an already deadly Rider.

I opened my holster only to be dismayed that, aside from my Spirit card, all the others were Blanks. Which brought me to another realization. "If the belt works..but I have only two of the cards..that means.." I clenched my hand."...All the other Undead are free."

If it weren't for the fact I had my own Rider Belt, I'd probaubly be pissing myself in fear right now. Having Chalice with me was good, but even he wasn't invincible, and with no sealed Undead to draw power from I was in for one hell of a time sealing them all.

Still, that was the Rider's code, to seal the Undead and protect the innocent. If I didn't do it, who would? I'd always wanted to be a Kamen Rider, and here was my chance..but I knew I needed to prove I deserved it.

For now, it was best to be on my way. I slid the Human Spirit card through and my armour reverted back to my human form. I then set off at a leisurely pace toward what looked like a town.

It was time to find out where exactly I was.

* * *

><p><em>The two landed on the field of grass and looked around. Black scratched her head."That's weird..there's nothing here."<em>

_White glanced down at her cellphone bag."Are you sure you guys sensed something?"_

"_Positive," chimed Mipple from within."We saw the meteor land somewhere around here..but I don't feel its aura anymore."_

"_I see," said the black-haired girl with a wishful look on her face."Still, I was really looking forward to meeting the new Precure..."_

"_Me too," agreed Black before clapping her hands together."Ok! Since that's done, let's go get some Takoyaki!"_

"_Do you ever think of anything else besides your stomach-mepo?" quizzed Mepple._

_His partner gnarled her teeth and yanked him out of his bag before shaking him vigorously."Do YOU ever think of anything else besides the next best way to annoy me?"_

_White sweatdropped while watching the scene."You guys.." _

_After several minutes of pulling and screaming, Black let the fairy go and took her friend's hand."Come on, let's get to Akane's before it's too late!"_

_Deciding that the mystery of the weird lightshow could wait, White and her partner took off back to town._

* * *

><p>I walked through the town I had found, looking around at all the sights. It was a very modern town with a lot of the conveniences I remembered from back home..though there seemed to be an air of familiarity to this place. As if I had seen it all somewhere before.<p>

But there wasn't much time for sightseeing, the Undead were free and they weren't gonna wait around for strong fighters to appear, they were gonna root them out from the crowd..even if that meant slaughtering a few hundred citizens that got in their way.

That was the law of their existance, to seek each other out and fight until one remains standing. In my eyes, that was a cruel fate, everyone deserved the chance to choose their own destiny, never minding what species they belonged to.

However, that didn't change the fact they were killers and needed to be stopped,quickly.

The growling in my stomach though told me that could wait. I sighed."Of all the times you picked to start up, why now?" In response, my stomach growled once more. "Fine,fine, I'll get you some food but then after that we gotta start hunting Undead." No growling, so I took that as a yes.

At that moment, a delicous smell greeted my nose."Mmm.." Deciding to find what that aroma was, I followed my nostrils down the street..and right to the proof of what world I was in.

A large station wagon stood before me, window open with a banner overhead. Spread out around were a number of white circular tables with chairs and umbrellas. The figure passing out food was a young woman with brown hair in a braid dressed in a shirt and purple worker overalls with a red bandanna tied around her head and the words "Takoyaki" tattooed on her outfit.

"A-Akane.." I murmured. This was getting more and more insane with each passing moment. If that woman was here, that meant...I was in the Pretty Cure dimension! Insane much?

Now things just got even more complex and wacked out. The Precures were very powerful warriors in their own right, and they probaubly could take down a couple of Undead by themselves, heck, maybe Cure Moonlight had a chance at bringing down a Royal Class.

But none of the girls could seal them, and no matter how powerful the Cures were, the Undead had true immortality and were incapable of dying, heck they couldn't even commit suicide! That's how bad it is. One thing was for sure, a battle between the Cures and the Undead could only lead to disaster.

To say I was overwhelmed would be oversimplifying things, I collapsed into a chair and held my head."..We're on a one way ticket to complete destruction if I don't do something."

That's when a soft,sweet voice spoke up next to me."Excuse me,sir? Are you alright?" Glancing up, I saw this radiant girl staring at me,worried. She had gold hair tied back in a braid with gold eyes and clear milky skin, wearing a top with an apron over it, making her look totally cute..gah, damn it!

I blinked at her."Um..yeah, thanks," I tried to smile, to show her nothing was wrong."Don't worry, I've just got a lot on my mind," Yeah, way to put it mildly."That, and I haven't eaten anything in a while."

This made the girl gasp in shock and cover her mouth."Oh dear! You must be starving! No wonder you feel faint."

I waved it off."It's nothing,I-" "No, it's not nothing!" exclaimed the girl, her tone rising slightly, catching me off guard. "You need to eat, everyone has to," She glanced back at the wagon for a second."Wait right here." With a sprint in her step she was off.

Several minutes later, she returned and placed a tray of octopus dumplings before me."Here ya go,Akane-san's Takoyaki. Dig in while it's hot."

I stared down at the plate,wondering if this was some sort of joke."Uh...don't I have to pay you for this?"

The golden girl shook her head."No, don't worry about money this time, just enjoy it." Still as sweet and gentle as ever.

I nodded and picked one up."Thanks," And chowed down..the flavor was amazing."Mmm, these are really good!"

My host seemed to blush,ah crud."Oh...thank you."

At that moment, another familiar voice cut in."Yeah! Akane and Hikari's Takoyaki is the best in the world!" That made my food go down the wrong way and I started coughing.

Yet another familiar voice admonished the previous."Nagisa! You shouldn't sneak up on people like that, especially when they're eating!"

I knew them from anywhere, but I didn't wanna believe it, after the day I'd been having however I was finding my perception of reality crumbling with each new event. Still, no use trying to deny the voices,I turned and glanced up into the faces of Nagisa and Honoka aka Pretty Cure.

The former was rubbing the back of her head,embarassed."S-Sorry about that, I just get really excited when someone starts talking about Takoyaki."

I nodded."Understandable," In my mouth went another one."Your friend did an excellent job on these."

That made Honoka tilt her head."Friend? How do you know she's our friend?" It was then I realized my slip of the tongue and knew I had to come up with something.

Gulping, I gestured with my finger to Nagisa."Well, you said "Akane and Hikari's Takoyaki," so it had to be owned by two people. Since this girl here has gold hair," Gesture to Hikari."I figured she must be Hikari since it's japanese for Light, and you must be friends with her cause you referred to her by name."

The dark-haired girl's eyes widened in surprise."That's pretty impressive to get all that from just what Nagisa-san said." Her friends nodded in agreement.

I shrugged."I'm a good judge of character, always have been."

Honoka nodded,smiling."That's nice," That's when it hit her."Oh! We never introduced ourselves!" She gestured to the tomboy."This is Nagisa," The girl waved,"And I'm Honoka," While the other bowed."It's nice to meet you,Mister.."

I bowed my head."Name's James Maxwell, a pleasure to meet you," Yeah, the biggest flipping pleasure of my entire life!

Hikari raised an eyebrow,"Are you..foreign by any chance?"

I turned to her with a nod."Yeah, guess you can say I am. I'm kinda here on a vacation, always wanted to come to Japan." Most of what I said was true, I just left out the part where I came from an entirely different universe where these guys existed as a TV show.

"Well, you picked a great place to come!" said Nagisa with a cheeky grin."The Garden Of Rainbows is an awesome place to live!" She slapped a hand over her mouth while Honoka glared at her.

I frowned but knew I had to play dumb."The...what?"

"Ignore her," cut in Honoka,nervously laughing."She tends not to think before she speaks."

"Y-Yeah," chimed in Hikari,sweatdropping. She then changed the subject."So James, what part of the world you from?"

Glad for the shift, I replied."I come from North America but I think one of my ancestors came from England."

"So, you have connections to both sides of the world," figured Hikari.

I nodded."I do, and I figured if I find things I like here, I might consider staying longer," I ate another dumpling."And this is one of them."

We sat around and chatted for a while, I let Nagisa snag a few of my Takoyaki since she had that hungry look on her face and Hikari had to go back at one point to get more, she didn't mind. Gotta say, it was really cool just sitting here talking to people I'd only see on the computer screen..ok, there was that one season that got dubbed into English but that's not the point.

Despite all their powers, in the end, these were just girls who had gotten caught up in something a million times bigger than them. Granted, the events of the show had brought them together and formed an unbreakable bond..but I was now feeling a little guilty that they would soon be caught up in the Battle Royale and be fighting for their lives once again.

"So, anybody else here see that weird meteor shower an hour ago?" asked Hikari at one point,causing me to look up.

"Yeah, it was really weird," confirmed Nagisa."They just came spewing out of some ripple in the sky and jetted off in every direction!"

I leaned in, my interested piqued."A ripple in the sky?" All three girls turned to nod at me."Tell me about it,please."

Honoka looked down."Not much to say about it, this weird thing appeared in the sky, fired off all these glowing meteors..and then just vanished..not much else besides that." I knew there was more to it than that but I didn't wanna give up my facade yet.

But this did confirm my theory that all the Undead were released, and were no longer just merchandise. They were living,breathing creatures with an appetite for fighting, an insatiable one too. This just made me want to get to sealing them even faster.

At that moment a jerking noise came from a pouch attached to the girls' schoolbags, both making them gasp in shock."E-Excuse us, we got a call to take!" Nagisa and her partner snatched up their bags and ran into a nearby batch of trees, Hikari following behind them.

I watched them go,curious, but knew I needed to lay low. Instead, I went back to eating..until a small voice near me asked.

"...Who are you?"

I stopped and turned to see, standing only a few feet from me, a small boy with short blonde hair and bright blue eyes, giving me a quizzical look. He was dressed in clothes that suited a small boy..yet just seeing him I knew, this was an ancient being, and being near him made my Undead instincts flare up.

Oh sure, he was called Hikaru NOW..but not too long ago he went by another name, a name any avid fan of Pretty Cure would recognize.

With a grunt, I lied back in my chair."That depends..who do you THINK I am?"

He tilted his head."..Someone who does not belong in this world." Geez, way to unsettle people,kid.

"You are...not completely human, are you?"

I turned my head to him."I could say the same about you..Dark King."

For a moment, a flash of red appeared in his eyes."Do not call me that. I no longer wish to be called by that..I am just Hikaru now." The calm blue returned."..You were not brought here of your own choice?"

I scoffed."No! Some weird voice started talking to me, saying I had to take part in some "tournament" or something, then this giant vortex appeared in the sky and sucked me in, when I woke up, I had this." I motioned to the Chalice Rouzer.

Hikaru blinked."And what are the terms of this tournament?"

Sighing, I replied."52 monsters have been released into this world, and they will fight until only one remains. The last one standing will get a wish granted, and their species will dominate the planet. It's my job to hunt them down and seal them before it's too late."

That made his eyes widen a little, guess I'd just hit him with a doozy."I see..so how does my sister fit into this?"

I massaged my forehead,"Hopefully, she won't have to get involved at all..but I won't make a promise I can't keep. These creatures are dangerous, and they'll attack anyone they consider capable of fighting. If the time comes she does get involved..I'll do what I can to protect her and her friends."

He let out a sigh of relief,"Good..cause if you allowed any harm to come to her..I could make your life very difficult.." The boy turned to go."I'll let you eat in peace now, but remember what I said." He walked off back to the wagon.

I shuddered and pushed away my tray, for some reason, I'd just lost my appetite.

* * *

><p><em>The girls ran into the shade of trees and whipped out their cellphones."You guys need to be more careful!" scolded Nagisa."You could've blown your cover!"<em>

"_Says you-mepo!" shot back Mepple."Why did you have to go and open your big mouth to that boy,anyway? He's dangerous!"_

_The duo stopped at his words."What do you mean, he's dangerous?" asked Honoka._

_Mipple was the one to explain."While you were sitting with that boy, I felt a really strong dark aura coming off him-mipo."_

"_A strong dark aura?" wondered Nagisa. Both fairies nodded._

"_There's something inside him something dark and powerful-mepo. He had to have come from that meteor shower!"_

_Hikari gasped in surprise."No..that can't be true..he seems so nice.."_

"_But..he knew that we were friends.." interjected Honoka."Though he could've just been lucky enough to guess." She didn't know whether to trust the boy, or cut him down. Like Hikari said,he seemed nice, but than again.._

"_Maybe he's just trying to fool you with kindness-mipo." insisted Mipple. _

"_What about Kiriya?" snapped Honoka,startling everyone."He was born from darkness..but he fought against his fate and changed..he was good, we can't be so quick to judge this boy, we need to give him a chance!"_

_The group was silent for a moment, until Hikari spoke up."Honoka-chan might be right, we need to at least give him a chance."_

_Mepple frowned."You're asking for trouble if you get close to him-mepo."_

"_We're not gonna get close to him, but we can't antagonize him." argued Honoka."For all we know,this could just be a misunderstanding."_

_Relunctantly, the fairies agreed and the group headed back._

* * *

><p>"That was an awfully long phone call," I quipped as they returned.<p>

Nagisa scratched her head."Yeah, sorry about that, some of our friends just don't know when to stop talking."

Honoka giggled."Reminds me of another girl I know," The tomboy rolled her eyes. Oh yeah, these two were the real deal. I had to protect them no matter what.

"So James, where you plan to go now?" asked Hikari.

I pondered that question, where could I go? I couldn't ask the girls if I could stay with them, we'd just met after all. "Well.." However, that's when the images flashed through my head. Images of water, a wharf, people screaming and running, a shark creature with sharp teeth. There was a brief flash of pain shooting through my system that came with the images.

After a few moments, the pain and images vanished yet I knew what it was."Undead.." I glanced up to see the girls, distressed looks on their faces. "James, are you alright?" asked the golden girl.

I shook my head and got up."I need to go, I just remembered I had an errand to run," I bowed to them."Thank you for the food." In a flash, I took off down the street, leaving the three to gape in shock. Whether it was my Phys Ed Classes from high school paying off, or the adreanaline of Undeads kicking in didn't matter.

What mattered is that I was moving much faster than normal, I was no Sonic the Hedgehog but I could probaubly give one of those Olympic track guys a real run for their money. Nevertheless, I soon arrived at the wharf where people ran past me,screaming their heads off.

And there I saw it, the beast was humanoid in shape but had the theme of a hammerhead shark running all through out its design. Its head was like the fish but a mask covered its face and it had webbed hands and feet along with wearing a leather vest with belts around the lower parts of its body. This was the Category 3 Of Hearts, Chop Head.

I watched as the creature made its way toward a woman cowering on the ground while holding a little girl. Both looked scared out of their minds. I grunted, even if this world only existed in a tv show, it was real right now. I couldn't stand by when someone was suffering in front of me!

I willed the belt to appear around my waist and pulled out the Category Ace of Hearts."Henshin!" And slashed."**Change." **The black static energy covered me and from it I emerged as Chalice.

(Play Kamen Rider Blade: Take it a Try)

Pulling out the Chalice Arrow, I took careful aim at its back and fired several bolts, they crashed into the creature's back with great force, showering sparks and drops of green blood every which way. Chop Head growled in pain before turning to face me.

"Hey," I commented."If you want a fight, fight someone who's actually worth your time."

"C..h..a..l..i..c..e.." snarled the beast before charging me. I grasped my weapon tightly and rushed in return. The battle had begun. As we closed in on each other, I pulled back and let fly more shots from my weapon. Chop Head crossed his arms over his face, enduring the brunt of the attack, before pulling back and thrusting out a punch. I ducked underneath the fist and jabbed my own fist into his gut, forcing him back. I swung my weapon in an arc, slashing its chest before bringing my boot up and kicking him in the upper torso.

The Undead stumbled back so I pressed my advantage and swung in a overhead arc, but my enemy was tougher than I thought and used its elbow fin to block my attack before slashing me with its other fin and giving me a strong kick, causing me to tumble backward onto the ground.

I looked up to see Chop Head rushing me so I pulled back on the arrow and fired at its legs, causing the shark to trip up and fall on its side, giving me the time I needed to stand up. The thing was back on two feet a few moments later and resumed its attack on me.

My instincts kicked in and I swerved to avoid its first slash, then again for the second before going for an overhead swing of its own. I raised my weapon and blocked before ramming my elbow into its body, causing the menance to take a step back. Lashing out, I dealt several more punches to the Undead before it caught me by the wrist.

I stabbed my blade into its arm, causing the shark to recoil in pain. Grabbing it by the vest, I yanked its form toward me and rammed my noggin into its head, making it stumble back, groaning. I pulled back the bow and fired more shots into its body, several cuts were starting to open up but the Undead still wasn't going down.

The beast roared before jumping off the wharf and into the water. I stared into the murky depths, ready to blast it at the first opportunity. That's when the crying reached my ears, I turned to see the woman trying to comfort her child, as I approached the two huddled together,frightened. Than again, I couldn't blame them.

Once at a close distance, I asked."Why are you still here? Why didn't you run with the rest of the humans?"

The woman moaned."My daughter..she twisted her ankle when she fell.." I cursed to myself. I needed to focus on the Undead, but I couldn't let innocent bystanders be caught in the crossfire. What should I do?

A splash from the water caught me off-guard and the shark jumped out and tackled me so I ended up on the ground with the beast on top, biting down on my arm."Gaaahhh!" I roared as the hurt came, and my anger started to boil. I pulled an arm free and punched it several times in the face before giving a kick to its midsection, knocking him off.

I glanced at my wound to see it slowly closing. Standing up, I fired repeatedly at the monster, dealing more and more damage. Off to the side, I spotted Cure Black, Cure White and Shiny Luminous watching with expressions of shock and awe. Perfect.

"Hey!" I shouted, getting their attention. I fired at the beast."Get this woman and her child out of here! I'll take care of this!" That seemed to snap them into action for they ran over and gathered up the two before turning and leaving the scene.

With that problem out of the way, I spun around and slashed the shark beast just as it rose its fins to block, but my blade split right through them. The monster was stumbling about from the weight of my blows so it turned to escape but I grabbed its arm. "Where ya think you're going?" I spun it around and did an upward slash, launching the beast onto its back.

Finally, I reared back and jumped into the air, the Undead getting to its feet but not fast enough to block me, and I did a straight downward slash on it, making my opponent scream in pain before falling back and exploding in a ball of fire. The buckle on its belt snapped open, signaling defeat.

I pulled out a Proper Blank and gave a flick of my wrist, making the card land on the fallen Undead's chest. It glowed before spinning and the shark was converted into green energy before being sucked inside and flying back to my hand. On it was a hammerhead shark and a heart with the number 3.

"One down, only 50 more to go."

(End Song)

I'd done it. I had taken down and sealed my first Undead. Granted, it was only a Category 3 but still, a victory is a victory. The guy had put up a decent fight however, and I knew the higher ranks would only be stronger, so I would definitely need the power the Rouze Cards provided. "Looks like my work here is done." I went to leave only to hear a voice."Wait."

Turning, I was surprised to see Luminous coming close to me, hand on her brooch."That woman and her child wanted me to pass along a message..they say Thank you for protecting them."

I smiled but my mask hid the expression,so I just nodded."Think nothing of it, I'm simply doing my job."

She tilted her head."Your job?" Black stepped in."Oy, who are you? What was that monster? Where did you come from? Answer!" I could tell she was just bursting with questions.

White though patted her on the shoulder to calm her down."Easy there,Black," She turned to me."Excuse me,but..what are you? You don't look the first thing like a Pretty Cure."

I placed my weapon back where I hid it."Perhaps that's because I am not what you call a "Pretty Cure", I am something similar..yet completely different."

That just seemed to agitate Black."Hey! Don't give us a cryptic answer! What do you mean "similar but different"? Tell us everything,Now!"

I scoffed."If you're trying to make a good first impression on me, you have already failed,Cure Black." Ok, I know I was being a little rude, but come on, the girl wasn't being very formal right now.

Black took a step back,shocked."How..do you know me?"

I shrugged."Word gets around, let's put it that way. As for who and what I truly am..that will have to wait, I only recently awoke and I need to rest." I went to leave, the battle and the stress of the day was starting to take its toll on me.

"At least tell us your name!" begged Luminous. I turned my head back to her."..Please."

I thought over that and figured it couldn't hurt."Very Well, if it'll quench your curiosity," I took a deep breath before proclaiming,"My name is Chalice, Kamen Rider Chalice."

"Kamen Rider..Chalice?" murmured aloud the golden girl.

I nodded and walked off."We shall meet again soon, Pretty Cure." With that, I was off. I knew I might regret spilling the little bit I had but there was no point taking it back now, the damage was done.

What to do now was to find a place to rest up..and I think I knew just where to go.

* * *

><p>The Garden of Light was peaceful, citizens were content and the land filled with joy. However, within the Queen's palace things were not so peaceful. A meeting was being held between the ruler, the Queen of Light, her advisor Elder, and the guardian of the Prism Stones,Wisdom.<p>

"I see," began the Queen."Yes, I have recently felt a strange surge of energy in the Garden Of Rainbows. I do not know if it is truly the Dark Power ..but it does feel similar to it.."

"If it truly is the Dark Zone, then should we not inform the Legendary Warriors?" asked Wisdom, he didn't like the idea that they may soon be at war with the Dark again.

"I believe they may have already come in contact with this power.." replied the Queen,startling all those present."..At least..part of it."

"A part of it? Pardon me,my Queen, but what do you mean?" inquired the Elder.

The ruler of the land explained."It seems that when this power entered our dimension, it split up into multiple pieces and scattered itself to other parts of the Earth, each fragment gaining sentience in the process and still retaining a chunk of their combined power."

Wisdom gasped."No..this power is alive?"

"In a way,yes," confirmed the Queen. "However, it appears that one of these pieces has set out to gather the others, taking their power for its own."

The Elder couldn't believe this."If this one fragment gathers enough of those pieces.."

"The power it could wield may endanger even my existance." said the woman with a sigh."Still, we do not know what this being's motives for obtaining power are."

"Probaubly to try and overthrow you." offered Wisdom. "That would be the worst-case scenario."

"I highly doubt any dark power can overcome the Queen's light," objected the Elder."We've seen for ourselves how powerful it truly is."

"While my power is great, it is not infinite," said the Queen."There have been times when I have come close to vanishing as well."

The two looked down, remembering the incident with the Heartiels. Wisdom asked."So, what do you suggest we do,my Queen?"

"Hmm.." the woman pondered this for a few moments."We will wait a while and observe this power, if it starts to get stronger, we will send word to the warriors of the Garden Of Rainbows and warn them of the possible danger."

Wisdom and the Elder bowed."As you wish."

They both knew in their hearts though, that while this force was small right now, if left alone for too long and given time to grow...the consequences were too horrible to think of.

* * *

><p>I stood before the mansion back in my human form, hands in my pockets. "This is it." If my knowledge of the show was correct, this was the place that the 3 Seeds of Darkness used in the first season as their base of operations. Then, in Max Heart, it was used to house The Boy...just thinking of the chat with the latter was enough to send shivers up my spine.<p>

Shaking my head, I went up to the door and knocked."Coming-zakenna!" called a voice. I waited a few moments and a tall Zakenna dressed as a butler opened the door."Yes? Can we help you?"

I nodded,smiling."Yes, I know it's a bit late and this is rather sudden but..do you think you can loan me a room for a few nights? I promise I won't try to be trouble."

The butler scratched the side of his head,probaubly wondering what to do."Um..well, while we do have rooms available..they aren't for just anyone.."

Still smiling, I replied."Oh, I get what you're saying," I pulled out my Chalice card,"Perhaps this will convince you." I slashed it through and in a flash was donned in my armor, the butler screamed and fell backwards, crawling back on his hands, scared out of his mind.

I took a step inside."Now..do you still think I'm just anybody?"

"W-What dark power.." murmured the butler as he slowly got to his feet."Y-Yes sir..I'll have a room prepared for you right away." In a flash, he took off. I chuckled and spotted a mirror on the wall and decided to inspect myself.

"No wonder so many Undead wanted to fight you..Chalice..I think we're gonna make good partners." A small nod came from the mirror image, I blinked and it was gone..did..did I just imagine that? I sighed."I really need to lie down and rest." I slid the Spirit card and the short Zakenna butler appeared next to me.

"This way-zakenna." He led me up the stairs and to a room at the end of the hall. He opened the door with a gentle push and beckoned for me to step inside. The room was spacious and had a giant bed though I could've done with a little less of the gothic design. Still, I wasn't in the mood to complain.

"You may stay and use this room for as long as you like-zakenna," squeaked the short butler.

I bowed to him."Thank you, I'll try not to be too much trouble."

The zakenna was a little surprised at my politeness but quickly waved it off."Yes,well, what should we call you,master?"

I shook my head."Not master,sir, or anything of that, just call me James,ok?"

The butler bowed."Yes..James..if you require anything else, don't hesitate to call. Sleep well-zakenna." He turned and shut the door behind him.

I collapsed onto the bed with a loud sigh. Let me tell you, I've never been more grateful than right now to have a soft cushion to lie on. "What a day."

One moment, I'm in Japan, going to the new Precure movie with my Kamen Rider merchandise, next moment weird voices are talking to me and giant rips in reality are appearing that suck me in, do something to my gear and my body to give them super powers and deposit me in the Precure's world where I found out I can become Kamen Rider Chalice and all the Undead are free.

Sighing, I hauled out the three cards and inspected them, putting emphasis on my new prize. There were still at least 50 Undead out there, and they would all be gunning for me at some point. Plus, I knew the higher their number, the more powerful they were.

Also, the Royal Class were a whole other problem, they had intelligence on their side, along with massive power and the ability to use human disquises. Oh, and there was the fact I didn't have the first clue where the other three belts were..though even if I found them, they'd be useless without the Category Aces...and add that to the growing list of problems.

Plus, there was that whole deal of getting the Precure to trust me, I was off to an decent start, saving that woman and child, but I knew there was work to do before we could cement a bond of some sort. I also needed to know where I was in the plot of the series. This was after Max Heart..but White had mentioned meeting other Precure..hmmm..

My head was starting to hurt."Eh, I'll figure things out in the morning..still.." I glanced at Mantis Undead."..Am I in over my head?" For a moment, I swore the Mantis shrugged.

With one final sigh, I placed the cards on the bedside table and closed my eyes."Yep, definitely in over my head."

* * *

><p>Phew, and with that, the first chapter is done! I apologize if it seems like the Cures didn't get much chance to kick some Undead butt..but rest assured, they'll get their chance soon enough. I just wanted to set up the story.<p>

Chalice has appeared and one Undead has been sealed. But with 50 more out there, you can rest assured that things are gonna get crazy...

Ok, if you guys got any good ideas for candidates who should be Blade,Garren or Leangle, say it in your reviews.

Also, if you got any good ideas for Rouze Card Combos PM them to me, and if I use them you'll get an honorable mention.

Alright, that's it for now. See ya next time!


	2. His Name Is Chalice

Wow, ok, didn't expect so many people to add this to their Favorites or Story Alerts, or the number of reviews for just one chapter...still, nice to know you guys  
>are enjoying this. Now let's keep the ball rolling with the next chapter.<p>

Oh yeah, I don't own Kamen Rider OR Pretty Cure, they belong to Toei and Tokusatsu respectively..though this story is mine.

Kamen Rider Chalice: The Pretty Cure Chronicles

**Episode 2: To Be Immortal! Pretty Cure And The Secrets Of The Undead!**

I must've been more exhausted then I first thought because when I closed my eyes I didn't open them again for the rest of the evening.  
>But than again, can you blame me for being so tired? I mean, I was after going through more changes in one day then most people go<br>through in their entire lives! To be honest, I was a little surprised my sanity hadn't snapped from the sheer batshit  
>craziness of it all...or maybe it already had and this was all one giant hallucination...a hallucination that showed no signs of stopping!<p>

But I digress, if this really was all in my head, then this was the scariest but most awesome kind of hallucination ever. Anyways, I slept until sometime late in the morning and awoke to the  
>sun shining through my window. I awoke and looked around, expecting to be back in my hotel room, only to find myself still in the mansion. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and spotted<br>the Rouze Cards on my table.

Scooping them into my pocket, I got up and headed for the bathroom to wash up. After that, I headed down the stairs and spotted the two Zakenna butlers asleep on the couch,snoring  
>away without a care in the world. Seeing a blanket nearby, I placed it over them. "Might as well, since they were kind enough to let me stay here." I muttered to myself before heading<br>for the kitchen table and spotting a platter of bacon,eggs sunnyside up, buttery toast, sausage, and hashbrowns with a glass of milk.

Alongside the food was a note,"For our special guest, enjoy." I smiled and sat down to eat. Afterwards, I found some paper and a pen and wrote a note.

"Hey guys, thanks for the meal, it was great. I'm going out for a while so don't expect me back until probaubly some time tonight." I placed the note near their sleeping bodies before  
>shutting the door quietly behind me and heading into town. My senses weren't going off which meant I didn't have to worry about any monster attacks..for the time being at least.<p>

However, that wasn't reason to lower my guard completely. There were still 50 Undead out there that needed sealing, and they could spring up anywhere at any time. Now, to be  
>fair, not all of them were purely cold-blooded killers, some were actually quite honorable and even kind-hearted. Namely the Category King and Queen of Clubs, but whether I<br>would ever run into those two and convince them to help would probaubly be a matter of luck. For now, I needed to focus on sealing the other Undead...and getting into the  
>good graces of the Precures.<p>

I was off doing quite well at first, with saving that woman and her child, but I think I went and blew it when I refused to answer Black's questions, though she was being kinda abrupt  
>with me, even after I stopped Chop Head from killing those people, so my attitude was partly justified. Of course, it didn't help matters that I had dropped several hints on what<br>was really going on, and who I was. Hopefully, if we were operating by the show's logic, they would be none the wiser of my true identity.

As I walked the streets, a voice called out."James!" I spun around to see Hikari run up to me, newspaper tucked under her arm. She came to a stop in front of me,breathing  
>lightly."Thank goodness you're alright!"<p>

Her statement made me blink in surprise."Uh..why wouldn't I be alright?"

The girl straightened herself before tilting her head."You didn't see the newspaper?" She held the front of it up so I could see, on the front was a picture of me as Chalice  
>battling the Category 3 Of Hearts by the wharf, I had to admit, the picture made me look pretty badass..that was until I read the headline in bold letters<strong>."Bloody Monster Battle! Violent Clash Rocks The City!<strong>"

I tried to keep calm and read part of the article. It basically read that two "freaks" had appeared near the wharf the other day and set about terrorizing citizens before  
>getting into a brawl with each other which ended with the "Armored Mantis" slaying the other in such a brutal fashion that no corpse of its enemy remained and then<br>departing the area.

Yeah, you could say I was kinda agitated by this. I'd gone out of my way to save those humans, putting my own life on the line, and how was I repaid? Why, the media goes ahead and depicts me as one of those killing machines just to get more ratings. Luckily, Hikari's soft voice snapped me out of my anger-filled trance. "After you ran off the other day, I heard on the news that those two creatures were fighting and scaring people..and since you were going in the direction of where they were battling..I got a little worried.."

I sighed,"I'm sorry I worried you,Hikari. It's just that I remembered I had a meeting to get to with a friend who knew of a place I could stay while living here," I averted my gaze."But if I had known earlier there were monsters running about, I would've stayed with you and the girls until things blew over." Yeah, like hell I would, though that wasn't totally a lie, I really did need a place to stay.

Fortunately, the golden gal was a very forgiving person, she smiled and shook her head."It's alright, you couldn't have known, besides, we all got things we  
>have to do, whether we want to do them or not, so I understand."<p>

That made me smile."Thanks," I focused on the paper."..This isn't right though, I saw that Mantis guy in action myself. He wasn't attacking anyone besides the creature, infact he even protected a woman and child until they got to safety."

Hikari nodded in agreement."I agree, the article even mentions a woman and her girl being caught in the middle and giving their own account of what happened," At this, her face soured slightly."The media is writing it off as some sort of fear-induced trance."

Good to know she was taking my side on this issue.I handed the paper back to her,"Well, hopefully in time, the people of this city will realize not all people  
>who look like monsters, actually are monsters."<p>

The girl looked down,"Y-Yeah..I guess.." She glanced up, now all smiles."So, what are you doing today?"

I shrugged."Not much really, might do some shopping later today, or see if I can find a job to take up while I'm living here."

My new acquaintance perked up."Oh, maybe you can come work with Akane-san and me?" Her smile seemed to glow."The pay ain't the greatest,  
>but Akane is really nice and we can always use another helper around," She glanced around before leaning in and whispering."Plus, you get to enjoy<br>all the leftover Takoyaki when we're done working."

I let out a loud chuckle."I'll admit, that sounds like a good deal, I'll keep it in mind." I scratched my chin."..Ya know, you should probaubly let Nagisa  
>work with you, she'll get a real kick out of having all that free Takoyaki."<p>

Hikari sweatdropped."M-More like she'd eat us out of business!" We both shared a laugh at the idea/fact of Nagisa and her love of Octopus Dumplings.  
>"The only other food that can match it for Nagisa is chocolate!"<p>

"Well, most girls do love their chocolate." I added, trying not to chuckle more than I already did. Once again, the girl nodded in agreement.

We walked on and soon I spotted Nagisa and Honoka not far off, walking in front of us. "Looks like your friends are heading for school," I glanced  
>at her,"Might wanna hurry up if ya don't want to be late."<p>

The girl nodded,"Ok," she ran on ahead."Good-bye,James, see ya later!"

I nodded then turned to go down another road.

Perhaps I could also add finding a set of wheels to my list of things to do today.

* * *

><p>"<em>Hikari, are you okay?" exclaimed Honoka as the Queen's life came up beside them."Did he say anything to you?"<em>

"_If he gave you any trouble.." Nagisa slammed a fist into her palm to emphasize the point, making the other two shudder._

"_No, not really," said Hikari with a shake of her head."We just talked for a bit about some things, and..he's actually quite interesting."_

"_Hikari.." began Honoka,"Try not to get too comfortable with him,ok? We still know close to nothing about him." The brainy girl felt a little guilty at how harsh she  
>must've sounded but she was only wanting to look out for her friend and didn't want any harm to befall her.<em>

_But her friend seemed to take it in stride because she calmly nodded."I know, we only just met yesterday," Her gaze went up to the sky."..Though I'm starting  
>to feel a little more comfortable around him. Actually, I'm also beginning to think Mepple and the others' thoughts on him were wrong."<em>

"_We're not wrong about these kinds of things-mepo!" snapped Mepple from inside his pouch."If I say that boy's trouble then he's trouble!"_

"_He hasn't done anything though." interjected Hikari._

"_Not yet-mepo," acknowledged the yellow bear,"But for all we know, he could be waiting for a time you're vulnerable then jump us-mepo."_

"_It's still too early to say whether he's on our side or not,Hikari-mipo," added Mipple."We need to take this slowly and not rush."_

_Hikari frowned, she trusted her friends immensely, and knew they would do anything for her. But James had seemed so nice to her. Although she had known  
>Nagisa and Honoka way longer than him and could connect better..for now at least, she'd trust their judgement."Ok..I'll give it some more time."<em>

_Mepple sighed in relief."Good."_

"_Say," started Nagisa."You don't think that guy has anything to do with those monsters that showed up yesterday?"_

_Honoka glanced at her friend."What do you mean,Nagisa?"_

_The tomboy ruffled her hair,pondering,"Well..think about it. That strange meteor shower, Hikari meets that boy, he runs off and then these  
>strange monsters show up to attack people and fight each other..it all just seems too coincidental."<em>

_For a few moments, there was nothing said, until Honoka giggled."Are you sure you're Nagisa-san? Cause the real you never says anything that smart."_

_Nagisa facefaulted,"Hey! I know I'm nowhere near as smart as you, but I'm allowed to say something intelligent once in a while."_

_Hikari decided to step in before things got out of hand."She has a point,Honoka, this does feel too much like coincidence..and the boy did seem  
>rather intriguied when I mentioned the meteor shower.."<em>

_Honoka shrugged it off."Lots of people enjoy meteor showers, it doesn't mean that he's some sort of mystical being from another world," Oh, if only  
>she knew the irony in what she just said."Either way, we can think about this later, we got school to worry about right now."<em>

_Deciding to let the matter go, the trio marched onward, unaware of what the future had in store for them._

* * *

><p>I sighed to myself while inspecting the motorcycles on sale in a shop. I'd found this neat bike shop that specialized in two-wheeled vehicles so I decided to<br>take a gander inside. To be honest, every single bike was in spectacular condition and had all sorts of fancy paint jobs and designs on them. The only problem  
>being that they were all WAY out of my price range. I had a fair amount of cash on me, but even the cheapest bike here costed ten times what I currently had<br>in my wallet.

"Even if I got myself a job, it would take weeks to save up the money I need to pay for one of these machines..maybe even months." And I didn't have  
>weeks or months to spend on saving up dough to buy a bike. I needed one right now. The Undead never remained in one place for too long, if they saw<br>no worthy fighters, they'd book it to the next busy spot, kill a slew of innocents and then move on. The more time I wasted getting to where my enemy was  
>on foot, the more lives that would be lost.<p>

That's why it was crucial I got my hands on a personal ride, every Kamen Rider needed a cool motorbike to ride on.

It was at this moment that a ringing went off in my head, causing me to go on alert. The front window of the store exploded, glass showering every  
>which way though none of it touched me. People screamed and cried as a figure leapt through the smashed window and stood up to reveal itself.<br>The beast was humanoid like the majority of the Undead, but had an orange mane of hair coming out from its head, along with fur coating its skin,  
>it wore armour over its chest, legs, right arm and back. Its right hand was a large claw while the face was feline with a black mask concealing it<br>partly.

I cursed."Category 3 of Spades, Beat Lion." The monster used its strength to lift up another motorbike and throw the machine through another  
>window, causing more glass to shower everywhere. From there, the beast turned to advance on some folks who were cowering against a wall<br>with the exit only a few feet a way.

Seeing my chance, I grabbed a bike helmet off a stand and hurled the projectile, striking Lion in the head,"Hey furball!" That seemed to get  
>his attention for he turned and glared at me with red eyes. The folks saw their opportunity and dashed through the exit, leaving me alone with<br>the oversized cat."I'm the one you want, leave the rest of the humans alone!"

Willing the belt into existance, I pulled out the Mantis card, causing the Undead to take a step back, but not to run. At least I intimidated him.  
>"Henshin." I slashed<strong>."Change."<strong>

The energy field spread across me and I emerged as Chalice, gripping my weapon. I seemed to put the lion on edge with my transformation  
>for he raced forward and tackled me in the gut. I skidded back far enough that my back slammed against the wall. The Undead swung at<br>me with his clawed hand so I ducked and swerved to avoid having my head chopped off though the claws dug deep gouges in the wall.

I brought my boot up and kicked him in the chest, causing the lion to stumble back. Raising the Chalice Arrow, I rushed him only for the  
>fella to somersault over me while slashing me in the back, forcing me to fall forward and the Undead to grab me by the arm and throttle<br>me across the room, smashing my side hard off a bike stand. Normally, a throw like that would fracture body parts but my armor dulled  
>it to a mild sting.<p>

I glanced up to see Lion picking up another cycle and throwing it at me like a softball. Doing a tumble roll, I managed to evade it and  
>brought up the bow to let loose a few shots. The bolts crashed against the creature, making him grunt in pain before charging and making<br>a swinging motion with his claw.

Using the Chalice Arrow to deflect it, I dealt several punches into his chest with my free hand before slashing him across the chest,sending  
>sparks flying and the beast to snarl. Just as I went to swing again, he grabbed my wrist with the unclawed hand and slashed me on the<br>chest with his bladed one. I saw sparks flying and jolts of pain shot through me.

The Undead then let go only to rear back and deal me a nasty left hook that rattled my noggin, following this was an upward swing that  
>connected with my chest and sent my body out the window, onto the hard pavement. "Dang..maybe throwing the helmet at his head<br>wasn't the best idea."

My foe leaped out of the window and attempted to pounce on me but I rolled out of the way and got to my feet then went into a roundhouse  
>kick that collided with its jaw, that blow must've been pretty hard cause the monster fumbled about,holding his jaw. This was perfect for me<br>though for I managed to land several more slashes on the creature and another kick to its midsection, causing it to fall on its back.

"Always wanted to try this," I chuckled to myself before removing the buckle from my belt and snapping it into the hollow section of the  
>arrow. Opening the holster, I drew out Chop Head and readied to slash."Now just stand still for a moment.."<p>

Unfortunately, luck wasn't with me today because the lion jumped to his feet and leaped up onto the rooftops. I roared."Trying to get  
>away now, are we?" I jumped up onto a railing and then again to reach the roof. The Undead took off and I gave chase.<p>

I tried to take aim with my bow but I couldn't get a clear shot due to all the rapid movement. Had to hand it to the Undead, they can  
>move quickly when they want to. He did a jump between roofs so I followed suit and continued to chase him. I wasn't about to let<br>the jerk get away.

For a few minutes we ran until finally he made a jump straight down and was gone."What?" I ran to the edge and looked down, no  
>sign of him."Damn, I lost him," Climbing down from the rooftop, I decided to find out what part of town I was in, first thing I noticed<br>was the sound of metal being crushed.

Looking around, I spotted what appeared to be some sort of junkyard."Maybe the Undead went in there." I marched into the place,  
>keeping my senses on alert, but no sign of the furball, my sense weren't going crazy or anything. Which meant the felon wasn't here and<br>was likely off nursing its wounds.

Deciding that my job was done for the time being, I prepared to leave..only to see a very large object buried among some junk and  
>glinting from the sun's light. "What's this?" Curiosity getting the better of me, I walked over and pulled away the junk..and underneath<br>was something that surprised the hell out of me, and with what's happened in the last day or two that's saying plenty.

She was a bit rusted, a good bit of the paint had peeled off her frame, and she needed to be filled up with gas, but there was no  
>doubt in my mind. Right here before me, was a genuine motorcycle! No,seriously, how stupid did you have to be to throw away<br>something this valuable?

Oh sure, it wasn't one of those up-to-date kinds and there was no brand name on it but gosh darn it, you'd have to be a Grade-A moron  
>to throw away one of these. "Oh well," I picked it up,"One man's trash is another man's treasure as they say," I rolled the vehicle over<br>to a pudgy man in a booth,reading a magazine and tapped on the glass,startling him.

"W-What do you want?" he snapped, not seeming too surprised at my appearance but probaubly angry I'd interrupted him in the  
>middle of his Playboy time.<p>

I waved to him."Hey, you don't mind if I take this off your hands,do ya?" I pointed to the bike.

The man inspected the thing with a frown before shrugging."Eh, do what you want with it, that thing's an eyesore. Just get out of  
>here."<p>

I bowed in gratitude."Much appreciated, you have no idea how much you've just helped me." With that, I rolled out of the junk  
>yard with my new prize.<p>

Oh yeah, when I was done with this baby, those Undead better look out.

* * *

><p><em>Honoka sighed to herself while sitting in History class, she was certain the topic being talked about was fascinating, but she couldn't bring<br>herself to listen. Her mind was too preoccupied with her and Hikari's chat. The guilt at what she'd told the girl was starting to come back,  
>stronger than before.<em>

"_Why did I say those things,Nagisa?" She whispered to the tomboy, who was sitting there,chin in her hands,bored out of her head._

_The sound of her partner's voice was enough to alert her though."Hmm? What you say,Honoka?"_

_Sighing, the brainy girl replied."I'm talking about earlier when we were walking to school with Hikari.." She lowered her gaze."I'm  
>wondering if I was right in what I said to her.."<em>

_Nagisa inspected her friend with a curious face. Honoka was the smartest girl she'd ever met, and modest, so for her to be like this  
>meant that she must've been thinking about something difficult. "You're talking about the boy Hikari met,aren't you?"<em>

_The dark-haired gal said nothing, simply gave a slight nod. Now it was the tomboy's turn to sigh."Honoka..you care about Hikari just  
>as much as I do, and I knows you wouldn't do anything to hurt her intentionally. I don't think you were wrong in what you said, and<br>I'm sure she agrees too," She beamed."You're a good person,Honoka."_

_Honoka's eyes widened considerably at her words."Nagisa.." Once it settled in, she smiled."Thanks."_

_Just as she turned back to listen in on the lecture, the buzzer on the wall went off and the principal's voice came through."Attention  
>all students and teachers, we have just received news of another violent battle in the downtown area between two beasts."<em>

_That made the girls jump. Another pair of monsters was attacking so soon? The principal continued."Reports indicate that one  
>of the creatures is an armored mantis, the other a feline beast."<em>

_The two locked gazes."You don't think.." began Nagisa, her friend nodded._

"_The monsters were spotted leaving the downtown area about one hour ago. For your own safety, school will be closed early.  
>You are advised to return to your homes, and if you must go outside avoid any contact with these creatures. That is all." The buzzer<br>shut off and the students rushed out of the building, partly due to fear, but mostly just glad to get out of classes._

"_Sweet!" squealed Nagisa as she packed up her books."Let's find Hikari and go do some shopping, maybe get Takoyaki."_

"_Nagisa!" snapped Honoka,indignant, startling her friend."I can't believe you're thinking about shopping at a time like this!"_

"_B-But I.." stuttered the tomboy,glancing around. _

_Honoka didn't let her finish."This is serious! There's monsters out there,running around, destroying our town and we have no  
>idea what they want or why they're here! We need to find answers and stop these people, we can worry about filling our bellies<br>later!"_

_Nagisa groaned and ruffled her hair."You're right, I got a little carried away..so what you suggest we do?" She knew you just  
>had to go with the flow when the blue-eyed girl was all business.<em>

_Her friend pondered that thought for a moment."Um..I'm...not sure." Nagisa facefaulted."But until we come up with a plan, we  
>should do what the principal says and head back home."<em>

"_Fine," moaned the brunette. They left the room and headed out of school, only to see a familiar figure wheeling a somewhat  
>outdated motorbike down the street.<em>

_Nagisa was first to recognize him."Isn't that.."_

* * *

><p>"James!" I stopped and turned to the voice's origin, seeing the civilian forms of Black and White coming up to me. I could see from<br>the look in their eyes they had things on their mind..that or they were wondering why I was wheeling this bike down the street.

I leaned against the machine and waited for them to approach. I waved."Hey girls, thought you were in school."

Nagisa shrugged."We were..until the principal made that announcement of monsters attacking in downtown, he told us to go  
>home for our own safety."<p>

To keep up the charade, I forced my eyes to widen."Really? I never heard about that. I was too busy looking for my own set  
>of wheels."<p>

Honoka blinked in surprise."Why do you need this? I thought you were only here on vacation, furthermore, how did you even  
>afford this? Even older bikes cost huge sums of money."<p>

I rubbed the back of my neck nervously."Well..to be honest..I didn't buy this.." Seeing their surprised expressions, I went on."I  
>kinda found it at a junkyard and the owner let me take it off his hands."<p>

"The junkyard!" Nagisa pretty much screeched, making me cringe."If you actually did find this there, it was put there for a  
>reason. It's a pile of scrap,You'll never get it to run!"<p>

I scowled at her, she was starting to agitate me."She's not as "scrapped" as you think she is," Folding my arms, I explained."Yes,  
>she's a little dingy and could use a good cleaning, maybe some paint, and probaubly a jug of gas but you'll see. Before long, she'll<br>be purring like a kitten."

But the brainy gal frowned."That still doesn't answer my first question, why do you need it?"

Mentally kicking myself for being forgetful, I replied."Look, I enjoy walking but I don't want that to be my only mode of transportation.  
>The next time I have something important going on, I might not get there fast enough. I'm just lucky my friend is a forgiving guy, because<br>I could've caught hell from him if I had arrived any later than I did."

My explanation seemed to satisfy her, for the frown softened."I guess that makes sense."

Nagisa took her friend's hand."We should go," She and the other girl walked past me and down to a street corner, before they stepped  
>out of sight, the bruneete looked back at me with a cheeky grin."If you ever do get that junkpile running, then you'll be one cool dude."<br>With a fluorish, she was gone.

I chuckled."If only you knew just how cool I really am.." I pulled out the Mantis Undead and inspected him for a moment before  
>slipping the card back into my pocket and wheeling off to buy some cleaning materials.<p>

Or at least I would've until Hikari stepped out in front of me."Hello,James. I heard you wanted to fix up that bike you found?"

I had to ask."Um..how did you know?" She tilted her head,smiling."I heard you talking with Nagisa and Honoka, Akane-san  
>fixes up the Takoyaki wagon all the time, I'm sure she'll be happy to help."<p>

This was all quite sudden for me, though it would be rude to turn down an offer of help. Still.."You sure that your friends won't  
>mind? From what I can tell, they don't seem very trusting of me." My tone turned somber at those last few words.<p>

Hikari's smile faltered."They're only looking out for me..I guess you can say those two are like my parents..but Nagisa and Honoka  
>are the best kind of friends at heart.." She brightened up again."I'm sure if you give them time, they'll come to trust you too."<p>

I shifted my gaze a little."..Maybe.." I shook my head."Alright, let's get going."

The golden princess nodded before leading me off down the street. After about 20 minutes of walking we found ourselves in front  
>of her house, the wagon parked out in front. Just like on the show. Hikari led me to the door where we took off our shoes and lightly<br>stepped inside.

"Akane-san, I'm home and I brought a visitor!" called Hikari, her caretaker arrived in the doorway a few seconds later."Oh,hello  
>Hikari," She spotted me behind her."And you're that boy she met yesterday,aren't you?"<p>

I flushed though I don't know why."Yes, my name's James Maxwell," I bowed in respect."It's an honor to meet you."

The woman chuckled lightly at my gesture."Hikari, you never told me your friend was so modest!" Both me and the Queen's life  
>shared a very nervous glance.<p>

"Actually, we only just met yesterday," said Hikari, probaubly trying to wave off the idea we were friends, smooth move,girl.  
>She shook her head."Anyways, we were wondering if you could help James with his motorbike."<p>

Akane dried her hands with the towel she was holding."I could take a look at it, but don't expect too much, I'm a Takoyaki  
>girl, not a heavy mechanic."<p>

I smiled brightly."Just do what you can."

We stood outside in her garage now, overlooking my new prize. Akane though, simply stood there,staring."So..you found this..in  
>a junkyard?"<p>

I nodded."Yep. So you think we can bring her into the 21st Century?"

The older woman stroked her chin,thinking."Hmm...it won't be easy..she certainly needs some work.." Akane shrugged."But,what  
>the heck? Let's give her a shot, and if she doesn't work out, we can always sell her for scrap metal."<p>

That settled that matter. Now, we could move on to the hard part, getting the bike into shape. We started by using chisels to scrape  
>off the excess rust that had built up on the bike's frame, followed by using sand paper to brush her down. The two of us then got out<br>the water,soap and sponges and gave her a good washing,the thing had probaubly three layers of dirt in total stuck to her.

Normally, I wasn't a big fan of working so hard but in this case I made an exception. After all, this bike would be a huge help in tracking  
>down the Undead. I could even use this to perform a ramming attack,score!<p>

It took two buckets of soapy water and a whole heck of scrubbing but we gradually wiped away the dirt and grime. The bike was  
>slowly coming back to life. We pulled out a tank of gas and filled the gauge until it peaked at full. Hikari came out at one point to give<br>us some drinks so I was grateful for that.

Next, we broke out the paint cans and got to work replacing the paint that had been lost. I chose a mix of black with silver along the  
>edge, followed by some red streaks. So yeah, basically the color scheme of Chalice. Hopefully, this wouldn't make me too suspicous.<p>

Finally, we made a few touch-ups, just chiseling off the last bits of grime and rust..until I accidentily cut my hand."Oww!" I exclaimed.  
>Clutching my hand and turning away from Akane, who now looked ready to panic."James! What happened? Did you cut yourself?"<p>

I shook my head and looked down at my palm, a small cut had opened up but instead of red blood, it had more of a greenish color,  
>like the kind seen when Undead bleed. Seeing this, I quickly clenched my hand."It's nothing..just a scratch, I'll be fine." No need to<br>let her know I wasn't completely human. "I'll just..wash it off in the sink."

Akane watched me as I went over and used the tap to make it look like I was washing off blood..even though my cut had already  
>healed and there was no point. After that, I walked back over."So..what you say we finish this up?"<p>

The woman narrowed her eyebrows."..Are you sure you're ok? I can finish this by myself if you're not feeling well."

I laughed."What? This little cut? I'm not a wimp,Akane-san. This is a scrape compared to some of the bruises I've gotten in  
>my life." For once, what I was saying was true.<p>

Akane seemed concerned."What do you mean,you're saying people have beaten you?"

I flinched, maybe saying that wasn't the best idea."Mostly just bullies or people who love to play cruel jokes out of some sick  
>sense of amusement, I defended myself and more often than not, I managed to get them into trouble.." I lowered my head."That<br>didn't mean they would stop harassing me though.."

The lady wore an apologetic expression."..I'm sorry to hear that..Some folks out there aren't fit to be around.."

I waved it off."Don't apologize for something you had no part in..but I appreciate it all the same.." I really did, nice to know there  
>was someone in this world who cared about me besides just Hikari.<p>

We finished sprucing her up and I gotta say, I was pretty proud of what we did. The bike now looked good enough to rival the  
>quality of some big-name brands. The paint job would really make her stand out in a crowd. Yep, I had myself one fine bike.<p>

"Wanna start her up?" quizzed Akane, pointing to the key ignition where the keys dangled. I smirked and climbed onboard,  
>fetching the helmet she provided and strapped it on.<p>

"Let's Ride." I turned the key and the baby jumped to life with a loud rumble."Heh, purring like a kitten."

Akane nodded,smiling in approval."Well, you'd best get on the road than," She pushed a button on the wall and the garage  
>door swung upward.<p>

I turned to her."Thanks for everything,Akane. I don't know how I can repay you."

She chuckled."Don't worry about it, you just took good care of this baby," She patted my ride."And we'll call it square,deal?"

I nodded."Deal," As I went to leave though, she called out to me."Hey!" I turned to her. She wore a grin on her face.  
>"I like you,kid. You're a good worker, got nice manners, you appreciate good cooking and Hikari seems to like you too. So<br>you're welcome back anytime."

My smile stretched from ear to ear though my helmet hid it."Thanks..Akane-san.." I gunned the engine."I'll see ya later."  
>I kicked the pedal and took off down the road.<p>

* * *

><p><em>It was later that day and the three girls had managed to convince their families to let them get together at Nagisa's house<br>to talk things over..and to do some homework. Although the brunette was finding it hard to concentrate._

"_Gosh,darn it!" She snapped,slamming her book shut with a growl."I can't concentrate at all, this is pointless!"_

_Normally, Honoka would scold her friend on not focusing on her studies, but this was one time where even she found  
>it hard to focus."You're right,no point in this if we can't concentrate," She shut her book."Besides,this doesn't even have<br>to be done til next week." She tried to smile though it came out a little forced._

_The bells were going off in the others' heads. Nagisa folded her arms."Ok,Honoka, what's the deal? You're normally  
>breathing down my neck to get me to do my homework."<em>

_Her partner tilted her gaze downward in shame."I'm sorry,Nagisa..I've just been thinking..about these creatures that  
>have shown up...they're like nothing we've ever faced before..and that one in armor..he seems to know way more than<br>he's letting on."_

_The tomboy sighed."..Yeah, he wasn't willing to answer any of our questions..that annoys me."_

"_Well,maybe he doesn't trust easily," Everyone turned to Hikari."I mean, he did mention something about just doing his  
>'job" after he beat that monster..and that he was after just awakening..if that's any help."<em>

_Honoka nodded."That's true..but if he's in the same league as these monsters..why is he fighting them? We don't even  
>know what they are..and then there's what he did after beating the creature, anybody pick up on that?"<em>

_Nagisa raised an eyebrow."You mean how he took out a card, tossed it on the thing's body and then it got sucked up  
>before returning to him?" Nods all around."Yeah, I found that weird..and his name..Kamen Rider Chalice..we've met<br>plenty of Precures but I can't recall meeting a "Kamen Rider" before."_

"_He said he was similar to us,but completely different at the same time," Hikari put a finger to her chin."I wonder what  
>he meant by that.."<em>

_The sports girl scoffed."Whatever he meant by that doesn't matter, the point is he's our best lead on what's happening,so  
>I say we track him down and get some answers."<em>

_Honoka approved."I agree, let's just pray that force isn't needed.." She turned her head."But if he's even the slightest  
>bit like the foes we've faced in the past, I wouldn't hold my breath."<em>

_Hikari needed to have her voice heard."He protected that woman and child, and if he really was our enemy then wouldn't  
>he have attacked us after finishing off his previous foe?"<em>

_Mepple exclaimed."I still say he can't be trusted-mepo..but if you want to talk to him, it's your funeral."_

"_Geez,thanks for the confidence boost," replied Nagisa sarcastically as she got to her feet."Ok, it's settled. Let's go track  
>down this Chalice and make him spill the beans."<em>

_With a unanimous agreement, the trio headed out the door and outside. Just as they got outside, a vehicle zoomed by and gradually came to a stope just a few  
>feet in front of them. It appeared to be a motorcycle colored black with silver highlights and traces of red. The figure wore a black helmet that covered their face<br>but the attire was familiar to all those present._

_Nagisa shook her head in disbelief."I don't believe it..he actually got it working.."_

* * *

><p>"Alright, I kept up my end of the deal, now you keep up yours and admit I'm cool," I removed my helmet and flashed a grin at the girls. Boy, the looks on<br>their faces was worth all the trouble. "Go on, don't be shy."

"No..way.." began Nagisa, before pointing a finger."There is no possible way you could've gotten that bike going in less than a day!" I rolled my eyes.

"..Maybe if he had some help.." Hikari meekly replied. Her friends turned to her,shocked."You HELPED him?"

"Hikari, do you have any idea how dangerous that is?" snapped Nagisa."After everything we said you still went ahead and helped him?"

"He's a complete stranger!" roared Honoka."You can't just go around deciding these types of things on your own! That's selfish!"

Hikari was understandably frightened by the tone her friends were using so she backed off."I..I just wanted to help him.."

"You still decided to go behind our backs!" argued the brunette,fire flaring in her eyes."You didn't discuss this with us,you just went ahead  
>and did it! I can't understand how you'd do something this reckless!"<p>

Ok, enough was enough, I wasn't gonna stand here and listen to this."Both of you shut it,right now!" I roared, making all three  
>jump back at my loud change in voice."I have no idea what your problem is with me, but don't go taking this out on Hikari. Out of all<br>three of you she's the only one who offered to help me out while you two went on your merry way doing whatever it is you do!"

"Hikari's not a child, she can make her own decisions about what's right or wrong. She doesn't have to always OK it with you two  
>first before deciding on things like whether to help a person in need or not!"<p>

"But..we're her friends.." began Nagisa. I didn't give her a chance."Oh, so that makes it alright for you to choose who she hangs out  
>with and what she does? You maybe close friends, but you're not her parents, and she's not a tool. Once in a while, you can let her make<br>her own decisions instead of always having her see things your way."

Yeah,yeah, I was being pretty harsh on them, spewing all that stuff, but I was angry at the fact that after all the time Nagisa and Honoka had spent  
>with Hikari, they still treated her like a child..the fact they didn't want me near her only made the warning sirens ring louder.<p>

For what seemed like several minutes, nobody said anything, finally Nagisa sighed and turned to Hikari."We're sorry,Hikari, we didn't mean to yell  
>at you like that." Honoka nodded. "I guess we kinda forgot you weren't a child anymore."<p>

Hikari flustered."No..don't worry about it..you're right, maybe I should've called you guys first before I brought him to my place..I just thought he  
>could use a helping hand..like everyone needs.." Good, looks like things were gonna be just fine between them.<p>

Nagisa turned to me, a small smile on her lips."I..guess you're not such a bad guy after all if our friend trusts you."

I blinked at her."Of course I ain't a bad guy, what could've given you that impression?"

"Oh,nothing..just think it's a good idea to get to know someone before you start thinking about forming a relationship.." Honoka had that shifty look  
>in her eyes but her voice seemed sincere enough for me. So, I chose to let that slide this time.<p>

"Good point you have there," I nodded."A good friendship requires understanding and respect, having things in common helps but diversity in opinions  
>is also very good."<p>

Nagisa ruffled her hair,nervous."I..suppose so.." She was likely still digesting that speech I made, then again, I couldn't blame her. After all, not everyday  
>you get told off by some total stranger who's secretly a armored hero who fights and seals age-old monsters that are part of a tournament that has a strong<br>possibility of destroying the world if things get out of hand.

And on that note, an image flashed through my head. One of a very large building, lots of smaller stores, people running and yelling, a creature with a cat-like  
>mask for a face. The image cleared and I was able to focus."So, done licking your sores,are you?" I muttered darkly as I strapped on the helmet again.<p>

Hikari grimaced."Is something the matter,James?"

I turned to her."No, it's alright, I just remembered I had an errand to take care of," I kicked the pedal."See you later,girls." With that, I rode off.

* * *

><p><em>"Nagisa!" Mepple leaped out of his pouch once the boy was gone,jolting the girls."I just sensed a really dark presence-mepo."<em>

_"What do you mean?" asked Nagisa."That James fella is already gone."_

_"That's not it-mepo!" exclaimed the little yellow bear feverishly."There's another one and it's nearby too!"_

_"WHAT?" The trinity of heroines were spurred into action by this,pulling out their transformation devices."If there's another one of those creatures_  
><em>attacking then Chalice will definitely show up too!" realized Honoka,clutching Mipple in her phone state.<em>

_"Alright, we'll take care of the monster first then we grill him for all he's worth!" Nagisa firmly spoke, a fierce expression in her eyes._

_The trio headed for where the monster was attacking. Hikari hung back a little,thinking. "Chalice..could he possibly be.." All the signs were pointing to_  
><em>her new friend. The fact that he showed up on the exact same day as the meteor shower, that he takes off just as one of those beasts shows up to attack,<em>  
><em>and for Mepple's fairy senses to go off right as he takes off couldn't just be lucky coincidence.<em>

_"Something the matter,Hikari?" asked Honoka as she glanced back while they ran._

_Hikari looked up and shook her head."Mmph, nothing, let's go." She ran to keep up with her friends._

_Yet the thought lingered..could there really be a connection between her new friend and Chalice?_

* * *

><p>The mall was usually a great place to hang out. Plenty of stores to browse through, food to eat, arcades to hang out in, this one mall in particular would've made for<br>a great spot to be with some friends..if it wasn't currently being torn to shreds by the Beat Lion Undead.

The monster picked up a candy stand and hurled it into a nearby book store, creating a huge mess. I rode up through a hole it had made when it first bursted through.  
>Hearing the roar of my bike's enging, the monster turned just in time for me to ram into him, knocking the big lug on his back. "Remember me?" I called as I climbed<br>off the bike.

Lion got up and snarled at me."C..h..a..l..i..c..e.."

I pulled off my helmet."So you do remember. Good, let's get to the part where I kick your butt and seal you." The Chalice Belt materialized as I pulled out my  
>transformation card."Henshin." I slashed."<strong>Change."<strong>

The black static field covered me as I charged him, I emerged as Chalice and tackled the brute at full force, sending him crashing to the ground. I landed on top  
>of him and started pummeling him with right hooks to the face. After three or four jabs however, the lion caught my fist and booted me in the chest, sending my<br>form flying back and banging off a wall,cracking it.

I growled and glanced up to see the Undead approaching me with his claw drawn. The moment he went to strike me with it, I caught his claw between my  
>hands and placed my boot on his chest before falling backwards,dragging him down with me. Using the momentum from my leg, I catapulted him over me<br>and into a wall,head first. He then slid to the ground,groaning.

I climbed to my feet and looked at my handiwork."..Wow, that was pretty cool." The feline didn't seem to share my views for he climbed to his feet and  
>snarled like a cat at me before rearing back his claw,readying to charge.<p>

Reacting on instinct, I reached behind and pulled out the Chalice Arrow. We both pulled back and then raced toward each other and swung. He got me  
>in the shoulder, I got him across the chest, sparks and drops of green fluids ran freely before we leaped away and began circling one another,sizing each<br>other up.

With a roar from me and a hiss from the Undead, we resumed our attack on each other. I ducked under a horizontal swing and brought my blade up in  
>a straight slash that made him stumble back in pain. Taking the chance, I ran forward and slashed his chest again and again. Not liking the fact he was<br>getting his butt whooped, the Undead jumped back and lashed out with his claw.

I locked my weapon with his before we brought up our feet and kicked the other in the midssection, the force of it knocking the wind out of both of us and  
>sending us both toppling along the ground,away from each other. I gnarled my teeth."Damn..Blade made this look way too easy..."<p>

The Undead was back on its feet first and charged me. I got to my feet just as it went into a pounce so I dropped to my knee and watched him soar over  
>me and land on its two feet. Pulling back on my weapon, I let loose a round of energy blasts into its torso region, making him groan in pain and spill even<br>more sparks.

Seeing him wide open, I dashed toward him and leaped into the air before coming down with a drop kick that collided with the creature's face, forcing  
>him to stumble back,clutching its jaw. I went to attack again only for him to lash out with a punch that stunned my noggin then grab my arm and begin<br>clawing me repeatedly before lifting me up and tossing me into one of the arcade machines,smashing it up and giving me a painful jolt.

"Owww..that smarts.." I groaned from the flight and impact. Turning, I spotted the Undead coming toward me,several cuts and bruises had opened up  
>on him but they didn't seem to be slowing him down, if anything, they only served to increase his hate toward me. I fumbled around for my weapon and<br>just got my hand on it when suddenly...

"That's far enough!" At the sound of the voice, we both glanced over to see Nagisa,Honoka and Hikari standing together,facing us with firm expressions.  
>"We won't let you run amok in our town anymore!" roared Nagisa, stepping forward,clutching her Heartful Commune.<p>

The Undead stood there and tilted its head,wondering who these three were that dared interrupt. I,however, simply chuckled."Dude, you're about to  
>get owned."<p>

Nagisa and Honoka held hands and yelled."Dual Aurora Wave!" The energy exploded forth as a pillar of rainbow energy.

Hikari waved her hand over her own device and cried."Luminous,Shining Stream!" She was engulfed by a pillar of gold light.

Both me and Lion watched as the trio transformed before our eyes. Let me tell ya, seeing this in action was a million times better than just watching  
>on a computer screen. Once the lightshow settled the trio emerged,transformed and ready for action.<p>

"Emissary of Light, Cure Black!" shouted Black, posing.

"Emissary of Light, Cure White!" exclaimed White, also posing.

The two struck a dual stance."Futari Wa Pretty Cure!" White pointed at the Undead."Servants of the Dark Power.." Black pointed and finished."Return  
>to the darkness from whence you came!"<p>

Hikari emerged as her other self."Sparkling Life! Shiny Luminous! Hearts of light and wills of light...for them all to become as one!"

To say I was impressed would be like saying fruit is to be eaten, a gross understatement."..Oh yeah, you're seriously owned."

Black and White charged and proceeded to attempt a number of punches and kicks that the monster blocked and deflected with ease. Luminous  
>ran over beside me and helped me up."Are you alright..Chalice?"<p>

I cracked my neck side to side."I'm good, but thanks anyway." The girl smiled at me before turning to the battle at hand.

"We need to help." I nodded in agreement and raised up my weapon."Right behind ya." I charged in with Luminous by my side.

Oh, what I wouldn't give to hear some theme music right now...

(Play Pretty Cure Max Heart Opening Song)

That'll do just fine. I slashed the arm holding White,forcing the beast to let her go before kicking him in the chest, Black jumped in and rammed  
>fist after fist into its gut before spinning on her heel and booting it hard enough to send it skidding back several feet.<p>

White went next, she charged up to the monster and swiftly swerved to evade the swing before grabbing its forearm,kicking out one of its  
>legs and throwing the Undead across the length of the mall. It ended up slamming into a round of tables and causing a cloud of smoke to<br>shoot up.

A roar came from the cloud as glowing eyes could be seen before the monster galloped out of the smoke on all fours and sprang high into the air  
>before coming down, claw sharp and ready. Luckily, Luminous jumped in the way and summoned a rainbow barrier around us. The Undead<br>crashed against it before the field expanded, shoving him away.

He flew through the air and smashed hard into the ground,kicking up a pillar of gravel. I patted the girl on the shoulder."Nice one." She blushed  
>at my praise. The other two simply shot me suspicous glances but I ignored them and focused on the Undead.<p>

I didn't see anything through the dust cloud for a moment then my senses fired up. "Get down!" We jumped out of the way just in time to avoid  
>a large chunk of rubble landing right where we stood before. I glared back to see the Undead stumble out,obviously pissed off at us.<p>

"What is this thing?" wondered aloud Luminous."Even after all our attacks, it still stands?"

I sighed."That's Undead for ya, even the lower ranked fellas can be a handful if you aren't careful."

White froze at what I said."U-Undead?" I realized what I said at that moment. I just couldn't keep my mouth shut,could I?

While this was going on the Undead resumed his charge and rammed into my gut. I was shoved back a few feet but held my ground and  
>began pounding on his back with my fist. After a few thumps, I brought my knee up into his gut, causing it to hiss and back off but not before<br>I fired off half a dozen rounds from my weapon.

"This is getting tiresome, we need to finish this soon." I growled at the girls who nodded.

Black turned to her gold-haired friend."Luminous, when we give the word,use the Luminous Heartiel Action." She nodded. The thrre of us  
>ran forward and landed a bunch of punches, kicks and slashes before jumping up into the air and coming down with a triple kick that sent<br>the Undead soaring."NOW!" yelled Black.

Luminous summoned her Heartiel Baton and it drew a giant gold circle around it."Luminous Heartiel.." She shoved her hands foreward."Action!"  
>The baton and circle rocketed forward and engulfed our foe, paralyzing him in place.<p>

I nodded and stepped forward."Thanks you three, I can take it from here," Before they could ask, I detached my belt buckle and slotted it  
>into the hollow part of the Arrow. I opened the holster and drew out my one Rouze Card, earning a gasp from all those present.<p>

"Isn't that the creature you sealed the other day?" inquired White, seeing the depiction of the shark on the card.

I nodded."Good eye,girl," I turned to face the enemy."Now, if you get queasy stomachs easily, I suggest you look away." I brought the card  
>to the Rouzer and slashed through<strong>."Chop."<strong>

A hologram of the card appeared before me and got absorbed into my armor. Feeling the power surge through my free arm, I pulled back as  
>the energy traveled along my hand."Here I go!" I raced up to the monster and thrusted my hand into the creature's body, making it groan and<br>gurgle as I pierced its internal organs.

The Cures gasped in shock as I unleashed my attack."..Not quite a Rider Kick but it'll do for now." I yanked my hand free and turned away  
>as the Undead fell back and exploded in a ball of fire. Once the smoke cleared, my foe lied there, bruised,battered, scarred, but still alive.<br>The buckle snapped open,revealing the runes.

"It's..It's..still alive?" sputtered Black, now taking a step back."But..why?"

I sighed and pulled out a Proper Blank."Because...Undead have something most people can only dream of possessing..true immortality."  
>This made the girls stare in shock as I dropped the card on my fallen enemy. The beast was sucked in before returning to my hand,depicting<br>a lion with the spade symbol and a number 3 in a corner.

(End Song)

The stress of the battle and the injuries was catching up with me so I leaned against a wall and took a breather."That's two down.." I  
>leered over at the girls who all looked like their eyes were about to fall out of their heads."Well, thanks for the help, you three but you'd<br>best get out of here before the police show up. I knows I am."

I walked over to my bike and got ready to take off only for Black to put a hand on the handlebar. I looked up to see a serious face on her.  
>"We need to talk..Now!"<p>

I rolled my eyes."Look, now's really not the time,ok? I'm tired, I'm hungry, I need a shower and a long nap, now please let me go."

"We can't do that," said White with a shake of her head."We need answers, and right now you're the expert on what's happening to our  
>town, so we need you to answer our questions before things go too far."<p>

I scoffed."Look, I appreciate the help but this is something I'd rather no one else get caught up in, trust me, I'm doing you a favor by keeping  
>you in the dark."<p>

"Why you..!" Black grabbed me by the arm."You are gonna tell us or I'll force you to!"

I warned her."Take your hand off me, otherwise, I won't be responsible for what happens to you." My hand moved toward my holster,  
>fighting these guys wasn't something I wanted to do, but if I had to do so...<p>

"WAIT!" We all turned to Luminous as she walked up, a pleading look in her eyes."Please..let's not fight..we just want to know so we  
>can better protect our home.." The girl,once close enough, took hold of my hand."So please..tell us...James."<p>

Everyone froze at this."James..?" started Black who turned to me as did White."Is it really?"

I lowered my head and chuckled emptily."Caught me red-handed,eh Hikari?" I pulled my hand free and slid the Spirit card,reverting back  
>to human, giving the Cures another shock."So..what gave me away?"<p>

Luminous beamed."It wasn't too hard,actually. My friends have been suspicous of you since you arrived. You show up during the meteor  
>shower event, you keep disappearing just as monsters show up. Plus Chalice appeared the exact same day we met. From there, I just<br>needed to put the pieces together."

I smiled and ruffled my hair."I was that obvious,eh?" She nodded.

"James..." I turned to Nagisa whose mouth was hanging open."What..are you?"

I sighed."Now that..is a good question," I gunned the engine."But let's head back to one of your places first and I'll explain everything."

Agreeing on Hikari's place, we set off out the hole in the wall and away from the scene, just in time to avoid meeting law enforcement.  
>I really wasn't in the mood to face them.<p>

* * *

><p>We sat around in Hikari's apartment, Akane was out doing some errands or something so we had the place to ourselves. I pulled out<br>the four Rouze Cards I had and set them on the table."Alright, I guess it's best to start at the beginning." I gestured to the four cards.  
>"Within each of these cards, a beast is sealed, they're referred to as Undead."<p>

"You mean like zombies and skeletons?" quizzed Hikari.

I tilted my head side to side."They have a few similarities..but they're on a whole different level at the same time. Like I mentioned,  
>they have true immortality. They're incapable of dying by any means. Beat them,slash them, blow them up, blast them to bits. Try<br>whatever you want, but you can't truly kill them. The only way to defeat them permanently is to seal them."

"They're...immortal?" gasped Honoka."So..they can't even age?"

I shook my head."Nope, and that brings me to my next point. You see, what's going on now is an event called the Battle Royale.  
>10 000 years ago, a being called The Master created 52 immortal monsters who represented the species they came from The terms<br>of the tournament is that the Undead battled each other until only one remained. The one left would gain the power to shape the world  
>anyway they wanted and allow their species to dominate the Earth."<p>

The girls and their fairies were astonished by my explanation. Honoka tapped the Human Spirit card."This card..it looks like a human.."  
>It dawned on her."Don't tell me.."<p>

I nodded."Yes..there was even a Human Undead, the originator of all mankind. Otherwise known as Category Two Of Hearts. Of  
>course, he won otherwise we wouldn't be here today."<p>

That threw them for a loop, the idea that humans were descended from an immortal creature sealed in a card. Nagisa was next to  
>ask."So..what's the deal with the numbers and stuff?"<p>

I explained."Well, like I said, there were 52 Undead but they had a ranking system," I held up the Human Spirit."They went from  
>Category 2-10, the higher the number, the more powerful an Undead was," That made them pale slightly, they'd seen how strong<br>a 3 was, so I could see why they'd feel a little frightened, but they wanted answers.

"After them, come the Royal Class Undead. They come as Jack,Queen, and King. They're much stronger than the numbered ranks  
>and have intelligence on their side, plus the ability to assume human disquises." That last one wasn't too surprising, the girls had faced<br>enemies who disquised as humans before..but the fact that the Royals were even stronger than Numbered was a cause to worry.

"Finally, there's the Category Aces," I held up the Mantis card."Which this guy belongs to. The Aces lack the ability to use human disquises  
>but they make up for it by being the best of the best. Infact, the Mantis Undead, otherwise known as Chalice, was labeled as the strongest<br>of all the Undead, the ultimate fighter. Rivaled only by the other Aces and...Joker." The way I said that final word unnerved Hikari.

She still asked."What's..Joker?"

I took a deep breath."..I know I said 52 Undead were created..but soon after, the Master made a 53rd Undead, the infamous Joker  
>Undead. He was feared among his kind as a Wild Card, some even referred to him as a God Of Death. There were three reasons he was so<br>feared. The first is that his power matched that of the Aces," That nearly blew their mind.

"Second, any Undead he defeated, he sealed them and could assume their form and powers, making himself even stronger,"

"He..could get even stronger by sealing the other Undead?" murmured Hikari, her friends held her hands to calm her down.

I nodded."There's one more..perhaps worser than the first two. If Joker became the sole survivor of the Battle Royale, he would bring about  
>the end of the world..and the Battle Royale would restart." Gasps of shock and horror were all around. I had dropped a real doozy on them<br>so their reactions weren't unexpected.

There was but one thing left to ask, it came from Hikari again."So..where do you fit into all this?"

I sighed and massaged my forehead."..I use to be just a normal human. I researched old legends one day when I came across the story of the Undead  
>and their milennia-old battle. I recall going to see the seal for myself..only to find another group was there and attempting to undo the seal," I felt the<br>story of Kamen Rider Blade might work here so I worked it in.

"There was someone who wanted to undo the seal?" exclaimed Nagisa."That's beyond stupid! Why would they do that?"

I shrugged half-heartedly."From what I gathered, they wanted to study the Undead and unlock the secret to eternal life. To say their attempt backfired  
>would be a huge understatement," I narrowed my eyes."When the seal came undone, I was hit with this blast of light and felt something burning inside<br>me. When I came to, all the researchers were dead, the Undead were free, and I had the Joker's belt along with the Mantis and Human Undead cards."

Honoka fidgeted about."Wait..does that mean you fused with the Joker?"

I thought that one over."Yeah..that's a likely possibility..though I don't think I'm a complete Undead. I have some of its powers, namely the heightened  
>physical attributes, the ability to sense Undead along with assuming their forms, and accelerated healing..but I don't have the total immortality they have."<p>

"Which means..you're a human/Undead hybrid?" asked Hikari in dawning realization.

I nodded."I guess you could say that. After realizing all the lives that'd be lost if the Battle Royale starts up again, I took up the mantle of a Kamen  
>Rider to protect the innocent and seal the Undead..and end The Master's twisted game."<p>

"It really is twisted," agreed Honoka."Creating all those creatures just so they can fight and kill each other, then giving one left ultimate power to decide  
>the fate of the world, We can't allow it!"<p>

I smiled and nodded."Great to hear, so I can expect you guys to fight by my side?"

I waited for a big,fat yes..but none came..only looks of uncertainly and confusion. I spoke calmly."Look, I know this is a huge amount of info to digest,  
>and I can understand if you're worried but I promise you, if we stick together, we can pull through this."<p>

Nagisa turned away."It's just..we need some time to think this over..you've put a lot on our plate after all."

I tilted my gaze downward."I see..alright, I'll give you some time..just make your choice before more Undead show up,okay? I get stronger the more of these I seal  
>but I can use all the support I can get fighting them," Sliding the cards into my pocket, I walked to the door with Hikari.<p>

"Thank you for telling us so much," she bowed."I'm sure we'll put your knowledge to good use,James."

I nodded and opened the door."My pleasure, after all, we're in this together," I walked out."I'll see ya later,Hikari."

Hikari closed the door behind me and I headed for my bike, strapped on the helmet and roared down the road, back to the mansion.

I needed some grub badly, and a shower..and some sleep, today had been very long indeed. I just hoped the Cures would come to their sense before it was  
>too late.<p>

* * *

><p><em>Hikari walked back to her chair and sat down,sighing."I can't believe this is really happening.."<em>

"_As if fighting the Dark Zone wasn't bad enough," groaned Nagisa sadly,"Now we got immortal monsters running around killing people as part of some  
>stupid tournament where the winner gets the power to control the world."<em>

"_And that boy,James..he's actually part Undead..one of them..but not at the same time." Honoka pondered aloud to her friends."I know he's not a bad  
>person, but can we truly trust him not to go berserk from the Joker's power?"<em>

_Hikari frowned, she was starting to think of James as a friend, then she finds out he's not fully human, she wasn't sure what to make of this."I...I want  
>to believe he's our friend..but at the same time, knowing he's got that thing inside him..that by sealing the Undead he gets stronger..I don't know.."<em>

_Porun patted her hand sadly."Hikari-popo.."_

"_Guys..what can we do?" asked the golden princess looking around,almost begging for an answer. "What do we do..?"_

_Nobody was able to answer._

* * *

><p>Phew, just in time for Christmas I manage to finish the second episode. This one is a fair bit longer but there's more stuff going on. Chalice getting his own ride, the Cures discovering<br>his identity and the history behind the Undead. Two Undead are now sealed..but it looks like the girls have yet to decide whether to trust Chalice or not..let's just pray they come  
>around soon...<p>

Alright guys, have a happy Christmas and I'll see ya soon.

Remember, Read And Review!..gosh, that's so cliched.


	3. A Warning From The Light

Thanks to all those who Favorited this story and reviewed it, nice to know my work is appreciated. Here's hoping I continue to keep you entertained.

Once again, I don't own Kamen Rider or Pretty Cure..but if I did,there would definitely be a crossover between the two..and it would be awesome. Alright,enough talk, Let's Ride!

Kamen Rider Chalice: The Pretty Cure Chronicles

**Episode 3: An Impossible Dilemma! Chalice Is Our Enemy?**

The next couple of days passed in bit of a blur, the brawl with the Beat Lion had left several sections of the mall in ruins so those areas had to be closed off while repairs were made and the mess from the Undead's rampage was cleaned. Fortunately, me and the Cures had stopped him before any innocent lives could be lost, so that was one good thing.

One bad thing though was Hikari discovering my identity as Chalice..than again, I suppose my actions and attitude had made it kinda obvious that I was keeping secrets,and in a way, I still was. I had revealed to the girls MOST of the truth about the Undead and me to some extent,though I wasn't quite ready to reveal to them I was from a dimension in which the events of Precure were a TV show. My explanation of what we were up against had blown their minds enough for the time being.

However, my attempt to ask for their aid..well, it met with mixed results,let's put it that way. They were certainly aware now of what was at stake, I mean,come on, they've only saved the world like a bajillion times over. This time though, they were up against immortal monsters who basically embodied the term "Survival of the Fittest" and I was the only one around at the moment with the means to permanently defeat them.

That's where another complication lied, Nagisa and the others now knew I wasn't human,at least not completely,from having bonded with the sealed Joker Undead. This revelation had shooken them up considerably,luckily Hikari had tooken it a little better than her friends,due to not being totally human herself probaubly. Judging by Nagisa and Honoka's reactions though, they were less than willing to work with me.

In all honesty, I really wanted to get their help in fighting the Undead,but I knew I couldn't force them to help me. The decision had to be made of their own free will. I'd always been a strong believer in being able to live your life freely and if they didn't want to help that was their choice..I just hoped they didn't end up becoming my enemies, I had my hands full with the Undead already. I didn't need to add the Cures to that list.

Anyways, like I said, the next couple of days passed and I didn't see much of the girls. I'd drove around a few times but they were nowhere to be found. I guessed their parents wanted them to stay indoors where it was "safe", since school was still closed. Plus I guess they just needed time to digest all the info I'd shared with them.

But yeah, a couple days passed and there were no signs of any more Undead,guess they were laying low somewhere. My aches from the battle had healed and I was certainly gonna put my new power to good use. I mean, Beat Lion IS the force that owned Leangle on more than one occasion, the so-called "strongest Rider," yeah right.

Alright, enough exposition, I was just sitting at a bench in the park,staring off into the sunny sky. The air was cool but not enough to give you a chill. I was just wondering about the girls when I heard a honking noise and glanced up to see Akane's wagon rolling toward me, the woman waving from the  
>driver's seat,smiling.<p>

"Hey there,boy!" The vehicle came to a stop but a few feet from me."How's it hanging? That bike giving you any trouble?"

I shook my head,grinning."Nope, she's working just fine, you did an awesome job fixing her up."

Akane laughed while rubbing the back of her neck."You're too kind,but I can't take all the credit,you helped out too." She then took a gander at my hand."How's your hand doing?"

I held up my palm to show her."All better," There wasn't even a scar left to tell I had cut myself.

The lady blinked in surprise."Strange..most people don't heal from cuts that fast.." Ah crud, she was getting suspicous, I needed to throw her off and quick.

Flexing my hand, I replied."Turns out the cut was only a scratch,nothing serious, besides I told you once before I'm use to getting scrapes and cuts."

That seemed to satisfy her,to a degree anyway."Well.. it doesn't bother you.."

A voice called out from behind her."Akane-san? Who are you talking to?"

She turned and called back."It's your friend,James! Come on out and say hello!"

"What?" exclaimed Hikari as she stepped out of the wagon and looked at me,bewildered."Oh..um..hello James.." She bowed nervously.

I waved back."Hey Hikari, was wondering where you been the past couple days."

The gold girl flushed."Oh..um..you see.."

Akane stepped in."I figured it would be a good idea if Hikari-san stayed inside until that whole mess at the mall was cleared up." She put a hand on her cousin's shoulder."If one of those monsters ever managed to get their hands on her..I don't think I'd ever forgive myself."

Hikari's cheeks seemed to go slightly red."Akane-san.."

I nodded in understanding. From watching Max Heart, I knew Akane cared deeply for Hikari and would never allow any harm to come to her, she could be a bit stern and tough at times but overall, she was a good person who just wanted what was best for those she loved. This was a woman I could respect.

I laid my back against my ride and sighed."So, you seen Nagisa and Honoka lately?"

Hikari shook her head."Not much,no, I talked with them on the phone the other night though, and they said they might stop by our wagon today, if their parents let them..or in Honoka's case her grandma," She chuckled lightly.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention, Honoka's parents are very wealthy but their jobs keep them busy and on the go often, so she stays with her grandma. Her mom and dad still love her and always make time to visit her on her birthday, a present she always looks forward to. Infact, that was actually the idea for a couple of episodes and it worked well. Alright, enough backstory for now.

"Nagisa will definitely come!" said Akane proudly."There is no possible way she can resist a tray of freshly-prepared Takoyaki made by yours truly!" She laughed heartily.

I'm quite sure a sweatdrop popped up on both our heads. "Akane-san.." began Hikari."You're doing that thing again.."

The woman's chuckling calmed down."S-Sorry Hikari.."

Hikari smiled at me."You'll have to excuse her..Akane-san just can't control herself sometimes."

I scratched the back of my head."Yeahh, I noticed."

A thoughtful expression came over Akane's face as she glanced at her wagon than back to me."Say James," I looked at her."Have you ever tried making Takoyaki before?"

I shrugged."I've seen it being made a few times on television, but never really made it myself."

She put a finger to her chin in thought."Hmm..well, we do have some time before I need to open up,so how about I give you a crash course?"

That certainly caught me off-guard,"You serious? I mean,you don't mind,do ya?"

Hikari giggled."If she didn't mind, do you really think she'd offer?"

Dang,that was good logic,might need to steal that one. I grinned."No, I suppose not."

Akane clapped her hands together,beaming."Excellent! Before this day is out,you'll be a first-rate expert in making Takoyaki," A small smirk crept up."..Second only to Hikari and me, of course."

I folded my arms."Fine, I accept your offer," Pumping my arms, I proclaimed."Let's do this!"

"That's the kind of attitude I like to see,boy," The woman nodded and opened the door."After you."

I stepped inside and got ready for my first lesson in Takoyaki making. Here's hoping I didn't blow it.

* * *

><p>I was seriously blowing it! No joke. I mean,really, how difficult was it to make a tray of octopus dumplings? These girls did it all the time, yet here I was screwing up at every possible turn. I ended up splattering batter everywhere,accidentily threw the whisker out an open window, dumped the chopped octopus into a trash bin and so on.<p>

I swear, if Akane ever made it big in the world of Takoyaki, I wasn't gonna bother signing on. I knew I would send her out of business in less than a week, and that's only if I was lucky! I was really starting to regret accepting that woman's offer to show me the ropes to creating these delicacies.

"Slow down,James, you'll spill the batter!" admonished my teacher though one could tell she was having a hard time stopping herself from laughing at how much of an embarassment I was making of myself with just trying to pour the mix.

I sighed aloud."How on earth do you make this look so easy?"

"Lots of practice," giggled Akane."If it's any consolation, you're only doing twice as bad as I did when I started out."

I gave her a mocking glare."That doesn't make me feel any better.."

"Lighten up,kid," She patted me on the back."You'll get the hang of things.." She added as an afterthought,"Eventually." I groaned to myself. She was having way too much fun with my blunders.

Fortunately, Hikari, golden angel she is, came to my rescue and stood beside me."Here James,watch me and do what I do." Grateful for the assistance, I watched carefully and took mental notes as she modestly cut up the octopi,mixed the batter and gently poured them into the pain then smoothly turning and flipping so the dumplings came out perfect.

All I could say was,"...Whoa. You're good."

Hikari beamed at me and then her cousin."I learned from the best." Akane simply smiled back. Yes,yes she certainly had.

I nodded and turned to face the assortment of ingredients and tools, with a grunt I rolled up my sleeves and rubbed my hands together."Alright! Let's try this one more time!"

I followed what Hikari did and was VERY pleased to see that I had turned out a batch that wasn't almost totally burned or floppy, or tough, or anything that looked like a mess. Yes, there were a few tiny black blots here and there but overall, I was just relieved.

"Not bad," Akane nodded in approval."Not bad at all, and it only took you twenty tries to get it."

"Actually, more like thirty tries," chuckled Hikari from behind me. I massaged my forehead while moaning to myself,just had to rain on my parade these two did.

"Akane! Hikari!" called the voice of a familiar tomboy,jolting us all and turning to the window to see Nagisa stick her head in,grinning at my tray of dumplings."Oh cool! You already made some Takoyaki for me!"

"Well,actually," began Akane nervously."Those aren't reall-"

"Thanks!" Nagisa snatched the tray and munched one down."Mmm..mrrm?" She stuck her head back in,frowning."..These taste a little different than usual,did you try out some new recipe?"

Akane ruffled the hair on her own head."I was gonna say, these aren't mine," She jabbed a thumb at me,"They're his."

Nagisa gave me an awkward gaze,obviously not expecting me to be the one who whipped up a platter of her favorite food."Oh..you made these?"

"Yep," I smiled and gave a thumbs up."What do ya think?"

She gave a slightly sour look down at the dumplings."They're...ok,I guess," She popped another one in her mouth and swallowed."But you got a long way's to go before yours are anywhere as good as Akane-san's." Ouch, now that stung.

"Nagisa," warned Akane with a small frown."Be nice, James worked hard on those and this is his first time, the least you can do is show you appreciate it."

"I guess," said Nagisa with a brief nod, but from the way she said it I knew she didn't think highly of my cooking. "So, are you working here now or something?"

I folded my arms and shook my head."Nope, your friends were kind enough to give me some pointers on making those dumplings you love so much, that's all."

The brunette's face showed a lot of suspicion toward me,why couldn't she and her partner just accept me like Hikari had? Why did they have to make me feel like I was constantly on a surveillence camera,my actions being recorded and judged? I had already proved I could be trusted on more than one occasion yet still they found reason to give me the evil eye.

Than again, the series had frequently depicted Light as the symbol of all that's good, and Dark as the embodiment of all that's evil, which in my opinion, isn't exactly true or even accurate. If playing games like Bayonetta and Shin Megami Tensei taught me anything it's that even those who embody the will of Light can turn out to be real assholes who are willing to do ANYTHING in their pursuit of Law and Order.

And by anything I mean it, stripping people of all their rights,freedoms, and individualities. Also, wiping out or brainwashing anyone who opposes their views or don't agree with their idea of what's right. As if that's not bad enough, when someone calls them out on it, they shrug it off and say it was for "the greater good" or some load of fertilizer like that.

Now to be fair,that's only when the pursuit of Order is taken to a terrible extreme. I do agree there has to be some number of rules in place to keep people in line but NEVER enough to make people into mindless drones. That just destroys the whole idea of individuality and independence.

..Ok, enough about that. I wiped my hands clean and took off the apron I was wearing."Thanks for the lesson,you two. I'll be going now."

"Wait," I turned to Hikari who seemed to be leering at the floor,looking almost embarrassed what she was gonna say next."If you..got some spare time later,maybe we can..hang out?"

I raised an eyebrow."Hang out?"

She nodded."Yeah, me,you,Nagisa, and Honoka. We can get to know each other better and stuff."

That actually wasn't a half bad idea, maybe this would give me the chance to get closer to the girls and might even get them to start trusting me. I nodded."Sure, I'm free for the day."

"Great, we'll meet up after I'm done my shift." Hikari was given a gentle push by Akane.

"Don't worry about your shift, I can cover for us both." said the taller woman with a cheerful smile.

Hikari blinked and tilted her head."Are you sure you won't need any help?"

Akane waved it off."Positive, you go enjoy yourself with your friends."

Her cousin nodded."Ok,thanks," She turned to me."Come on, let's go." I nodded and followed her out the door and over where Nagisa and Honoka were sitting."Hey,you two. Akane said it's alright for us to hang out together."

Both glanced up at me with expressions that seemed to be cheerful yet tense at the same time. As if they were waiting for me to jump them."That's nice," commented Honoka as she placed her hands on the table."To be truthful, we wanted to ask you a few more questions."

Again with the questions, though that wasn't too big a surprise. "More questions,eh? I'm getting the feeling you two don't trust me." A nod from both of them confirmed it,Hikari tilted her gaze to the side,whether it was out of shame for her friends or herself I didn't know and didn't much care.

"Not entirely,no," said Honoka."You appear just as these beasts show up, you say you want to keep people safe by sealing them, but you're obviously using their own power against them, if that fight with the lion is any indication."

"How did you do that,anyway?" quizzed Nagisa,anxiousness and caution in her voice.

I sighed and sat down,this was gonna take a while."Fine, I'll explain. Yes, as you said Honoka, I can turn the Undead's power against them by using this," I willed the Chalice Rouzer to appear."By detaching and slotting this into my Chalice Arrow, the weapon I use to fight in my Rider form, I'm able to take a sealed Undead,referred to as a Rouze Card, and slash it through the Rouzer,"

I pulled out the Chop Head card and flashed it in front of them. Their eyes remained trained."On doing so, the card is activated and releases its power which is then transferred through the Rouzer and into my body,granting me the ability of whatever Undead I slashed the Rouzer with. In the case with the Undead at the mall, I used this one,Chop Head, which as the name implies,enhances the strength of chop attacks."

"So that's what you used to defeat him," realized Hikari,eyes lighting up. I nodded and slid the card back into my pocket, a slight scowl popped up on her face."Was such brutal methods really necessary?"

I shrugged at her."If you didn't want that thing to escape and go on a rampage,probaubly killing dozens of people before we tracked him down again, than yes, it was necessary,besides,not like the fella's dead or anything," Pulling out the 3 Of Spades, I smirked."He's just taking a little nap right now,like a cute little kitty."

The braided girl giggled at my joke, but her friends weren't laughing."Not funny." growled Nagisa,dagger eyes starting to appear.

I scoffed and laid the cards down."Geez, you really ain't in the mood for jokes,are you?"

"No," said Nagisa."And don't make that kind of sarcasm again."

I rolled my eyes at the woman which only miffed her furthur."You know, with how fiercely you girls fight, I figured you'd be able to stomach Undead battles better,"

"Of course we can!" shot back Nagisa,who quickly looked down."Just..I guess it's just natural for us but to see someone else fight the way you do..especially since you're not 's unsettling."

I grimaced and massaged my forehead."Look, I don't like this anymore than you do, but we can't go back in time. Heaven knows I've wanted to, but if my life as a human is truly over than there's nothing I can do about it. The only thing I can do is seal those monsters before too many lives are lost,"

Now, I decided, was the time to be blunt."Trust me, if you think the battles right now are bad,you ain't seen NOTHING yet. These beings are powerful, and dangerous, and they become even more of a threat when there's more than one or two fighting together."

"But.." started Hikari as she took a sip of water."..Why are they doing this? Don't they realize the pain they're causing with their actions?"

Sighing, I explained."As much as I hate to admit, the Undead aren't doing this entirely of their own free will, they're simply following the law installed in them by The Master, that law requires them to fight each other until only one remains. They are only fulfilling the purpose of their existance,nothing more."

"And the promise of ultimate power is probaubly too good a prize to pass up for a number of them." added Honoka in a rather gruff voice.

"Yeah, that too." I agreed,hoping to get on her good side,seemed to work too for her eyes lost some of their stern gleam.

Nagisa was next to ask a question."Say, I noticed that the card you use to become that "creature" has got a Heart on it, but the one the Lion is sealed in has a Spade symbol,what's the story with that?"

I smiled,happy to have another chance to show off my knowledge on Blade."You picked up on that,I see," I pulled out the Category Ace and 2 of Hearts and laid them on the table with the others. "The 52 Undead are set up like a deck of cards which are divided into four suits,"

"The four suits are called Spades,Diamonds,Clubs, and Hearts and 13 of each Undead belongs to each suit,you following me so far?" Nods all around. "Good, the Undead's ranks are classified this way too. Nine are in the Numbered, three are Royal, and the Ace is at the top of the ranks."

"And where does Joker fit in?" quizzed Honoka.

I shook my head."Nowhere..and everywhere, he's the Wild Card remember? Which means he's in a Category all his own, but can be any of the others too thanks to his ability to copy their form and powers," At this,my tone turned edged."However, Joker is a beast driven by the instinct for Destruction, a animal who's only desire is to bring about the end of all things. I'm just glad I only fused with him and didn't become him."

"I'm glad too," agreed Hikari as she tapped her chin in thought."But with so many powerful enemies, the Royals, the Aces, and even Joker, I'm wondering how the Human Undead managed to beat them all? Seeing as he was a 2, the lowest rank."

"An excellent question," I nodded,making her beam."Yes, he was the lowest of the Heart Category, but unlike the majority of his kind, he had something that no other Undead had. While the others fought mostly for selfish reasons or because it was in their nature, the Human Undead held love and compassion in his heart and a wish to protect what was important to him,"

"Perhaps it was these things that gave him the drive needed to prevail over his enemies and become the victor of the first Battle Royale."

The trio was silent for a few moments after I finished talking, from the looks in their eyes I had given them plenty of food for thought. Nagisa pondered aloud while glancing at my cards."I wonder what it's like,living for more than 10 000 years.."

"Well, it's certainly not everything it's cracked up to be," I replied,making her look up."At least in my opinion. Oh sure you get to see loads more things and do tons of stuff you could never do in an average lifespan..but you can't exactly have a normal relationship due to everyone you know will one day die while you remain alive,"

I remembered a line from a Ben 10 episode and figured now was a good time to use it."Time is your friend, not your enemy. You should cherish those nearest you while ya still can."

"Cherish those nearest.." muttered Honoka as she and her partner gazed over to Hikari who gazed back. Ah yeah, I had gotten through to them now,at least partially.

Just then, Hikari's trinket popped open exposing Porun's face and in a poof of smoke landed on the table in his fairy form and waltzed over to me,looking up with his big eyes. I had to resist the urge to hug him than and there due to being so adorable.

"Yes? Can I help you?" I asked with a happy smile.

He pointed up at me."You're..not gonna hurt Hikari,right-popo?"

I shook my head."Of course not, I'd let myself be sealed before I so much as lay a hand on her, and that's a promise."

The little guy was quiet for a moment then smiled ear to ear."Then will you be my friend-popo?"

I chuckled and gently pat him on the head."Sure thing, I'll be your friend for as long as you want me to be." He cheered and jumped into my arms.

"Hikari! I got a new friend-popo!"

"Yes, you certainly do, Porun," said Hikari, a gleam in her eyes. Lulun jumped into my arms soon after with a giggle. They both snuggled in as even Nagisa and Honoka seemed to lighten up at the sight of the fairies in my arms. I knew it was only a matter of time before they trusted me fully, then together we could seriously kick some Undead ass!

Unfortunately,all good things must come to an end at some point. A squeak could be heard."Porun! Lulun! What do ya think you're doing-mepo?" That annoying yellow bear Mepple and his fiance Mipple jumped out of their bags and pulled the little ones out of my arms in a flash.

"Get your grubby hands off them-mipo!" snapped Mipple in my direction. I flinched at her harsh tone.

"Mepple, let go of Porun!" snapped the brunette at her fairy, who was holding the anxious little guy in his paws.

"He's not bad, he's our friend-lulu!" argued Lulun, Mipple holding her back from me.

"That's where you're wrong-mipo!" exclaimed the pink rabbit,throwing a venomous glare at me."He's just trying to trick you! Make you let your guard down and then get you! He's evil!"

"Whoa,whoa!" I cried,raising my hands and standing up."How exactly am I evil in your eyes?"

"Because you are!" spat Mepple."You got a dark aura all over your body, you're not human, and you're taking the power of these monsters for yourself! What more proof do we need?"

"Ok,listen closely furball!" I slammed my hands on the table,startling everybody."Just because someone's "dark" doesn't automatically mean they're evil! Second, I knows I'm not a complete human so I don't need you rubbing it in, and third, I'm only taking the power cause I NEED it to defeat the other Undead and save innocent people!"

"All that power's just gonna go to your head-mepo!" roared Mepple,pointing at me."It always happens to those aligned with Darkness and you'll be no different! And when you do become a monster,we'll be sure to bring you down-mepo!"

"That's enough,Mepple!" snapped Nagisa, obviously having enough of the furballs' accusations.

However, I wasn't sticking around to hear more."Well than," I straightened myself while throwing a scornful look at Mepple and Mipple."I knows when I'm not wanted,I'll be taking my leave now." Not showing any signs of my feelings being hurt, I walked over to my bike and slid on my helmet.

Looking back, I saw Hikari giving me a pained look, the other two girls a little shamed and annoyed. Porun and Lulun appeared to be ready to ball their eyes out, and Mepple and Mipple just kept on giving me the look of death.

Turning away, I kick started the engine and drove off down the road.

And just when things were starting to go smoothly for me too.

* * *

><p><em>The Prism Stones upon the Hill of Light were glowing brightly, giving off swarms of colored sparkles that floated up into the air in a constant stream. To observers, this was a dazzling sight and only occurred once every so often. In the case of the stones' guardian though, this was serious business and needed to be treated as such.<em>

"_Oh no!" cried Wisdom as he raced up the steps leading to the altar."The Prism Stones! Why are they-" He stopped as his eyes opened in realization."Oh dear..this can't mean what I think it does.." He was always good at telling what the stones were trying to say, he wasn't the guardian for nothing after all. _

_Right now, they were giving off..something akin to a warning."I need to tell the Elder about this immediately!" He raced off down the steps and across the field toward the palace,screaming."Elder! Elder!"_

_He threw open the door and banged right into Elder,knocking himself to the ground."Oww,watch where you're.." He trailed off at the sight of the old man."Elder!"_

_The man with the staff rubbed his noggin,muttering to himself."Not so loud,Wisdom! You know I have a hearing problem!"_

_Wisdom got to his feet and bowed."My apologies, but the Prism Stones are acting up!"_

_This made the Elder's large eyebrows raise up in surprise."..We must inform the Queen at once!" Without a moment to lose, they dashed for their ruler's throne room and threw open the doors."Queen! We have something most urgent to report!"_

"_Elder, Wisdom, what seems to be the matter?" asked the woman in a worried tone._

"_The power that's appeared in the Garden of Rainbows.." panted Wisdom."The Prism Stones..are reacting..."_

_If the Queen's face could show emotion,she'd be wearing a deep frown right now."..I see, yes, that is indeed urgent news.." A sigh could be heard."Then we have no choice,contact the Legendary Warriors."_

_The duo bowed."We will do so at once,my queen." announced Elder before they left to make preparations._

_The woman sat alone,thinking aloud."Even if this being's intentions are noble..I cannot allow one whose heart is clouded by darkness to run free. I only pray we can show this person the light before he is lost completely."_

* * *

><p>Even with the engine blaring, I could still hear Hikari's voice over the noise."James!" I didn't reply but slowed down a little anyways, no use being a douche to someone who'd done nothing but try to help me. Least I could do was here her out.<p>

I slowed to a stop and turned to her as she ran up,breathing heavily. I flipped up the visor and grunted."Make it quick, I'm not in a very good mood right now." Ok, perhaps I was being a tad harsh but can you really blame me after what those little furballs had said to me? No,you couldn't.

The young girl took several deep breaths to compose herself before speaking."I just wanted to let you know, Mepple and Mipple didn't mean what they said back there."

I scoffed but my helmet muffled it."Sure sounded to me like they did."

"Please," she practically begged."Don't think too badly of them. They've just had very bad experiences with people from the world of Darkness.." Looking down,she murmured."Their world was almost destroyed at one point by servants of the Dark Power."

Ah geez, she just had to bring this topic up,didn't she? Still, I had to keep a low profile."What do you mean?"

Hikari looked up."A couple years ago,just before Nagisa and Honoka became Pretty Cure, Mepple and Mipple lived in a place called the Garden Of Light. Their world was watched over by the Queen Of Light and was also home to a source of tremendous power: The Prism Stones. Crystals said to hold the power to create all things."

I nodded to show I was listening."Unfortunately, the Queen's counterpart, the Dark King, who embodied the power to consume all things desired the Stones for himself so he could keep his own power from consuming his body and that darkness would reign over all worlds."

I sighed."Oh yeah, he wanted to keep his own body from breaking apart by taking even more power..that makes LOADS of sense." In case one didn't notice, I was being sarcastic.

Hikari shook her head."It doesn't make much sense to me either, but as I was saying, the Dark King attacked the Garden and managed to claim five of the Prism Stones. Luckily, Mepple and Mipple took the last two and fled to Earth where they met Nagisa and Honoka and bestowed them with the powers of Pretty Cure to fight against minions of the Dark Zone,"

"The two's relationship didn't have the best of starts but eventually, through their time as Precure, they became inseparable friends who would do anything for each other. After many battles and adventures they gathered all seven Prism Stones and went to the Garden of Light to restore it and defeat the Dark King."

"I'm guessing that wasn't the end of things?" I asked,knowing she'd say yes,which she did.

"Right, for a while things were peaceful but the 3 Seeds Of Darkness, remnants of the Dark King, set about to restore him so the girls obtained power from the Prism Stones and Porun to fight them. After a long time, they managed to defeat the revived Dark King and save the world..but the story continued during their next school year..when I appeared."

"You see, even after all their hard work, the Cures still weren't free of the Dark King's shadow. A part of him survived and lived on as a boy..my cousin Hikaru."

Even if I already knew that,my eyes still bulged out."Your cousin is the Dark King?"

Hikari nodded."Yes, he doesn't like to talk about it. He doesn't want to be reminded of the things he did. And..there's something you need to know..I'm actually..the Life of the Queen Of Light."

I tilted my head."..Wha? How did that happen?"

She seemed to flush at this."Well,you see, just before his previous defeat, the Dark King fired one last attack that struck the Queen and injured her,forcing her to split up into multiple beings. One of them..was me. I didn't remember much at the time but I met Akane-san and she took me in as her own. Soon after, I met Nagisa and Honoka and became Shiny Luminous,"

"The strange thing is, from the start, I felt like I'd seen them somewhere before..I just didn't know where or why..but as we gathered the other parts of me,things started to become clearer and some of my memories as the Queen returned. It all came to a head when Baldez, the leader of the Guardians who protected Hikaru, appeared with him and revealed who He truly was.."

"However, both the Light and Dark sides had grown so powerful that if one were to be destroyed, the other would fall too and all worlds would plunge into nothingness.." Ah gee, that's a pleasant thought.

"So, I became the Queen once more and helped my friends defeat Baldez, who was the new Dark King, but..I can't quite explain how but..even though the Queen's been restored..I'm still here..and so is Hikaru."

"Hmm.." I hummed to myself."Perhaps while you were living the life of a human, you developed so many memories with your friends, and gained so many feelings that those helped you to become your own person and not just a remnant of the Queen's life."

Hikari blinked at what I said."..Yeah, I guess that would make sense."

"Now," I crossed my arms."What does all this have to do with those little furballs who can't keep their mouths shut?"

The queen's life let out a long sigh."I just...want you to understand that they've had it hard, they've almost lost their home, lost their friends on more than one occasion, and I think they've had so many bad experiences with those aligned with Darkness that just being around you makes them nervous."

I grimaced."They called me a monster,Hikari. What they said to me was the equivalent of prejudice. Even though I didn't lay a hand on them, they still lashed out at me. And you expect me to just let that go?"

"Of course not!" exclaimed the gal,a little louder than intended probaubly."What they said to you was hurtful, I could tell by the look on your face, and you have every reason to be mad at them. Even so," At this, she quieted down.

I finished for her."You still believe they're good people,don't you?"

She nodded."I do, Mepple can be a little annoying at times but his heart's in the right place. He just doesn't want to see any of us get hurt," The girl gently touched my arm."I promise, I'll make them apologize, but is it too much to ask for you to give them another chance?"

I was silent for a bit,thinking. True, I tended to give second chances to people who had wroned me in some way, though more often than not, those came back to bite me in the rear, but Hikari seemed to care about me, and only tried to find the good in people."I'll think about it," I nodded."You get those two to apologize and I'll consider letting them off the hook."

She beamed,gosh that smile was as bright as the sun."Thank you, that means so much."

"Yeah, I suppose," I slid the visor down and gunned the engine."I'm off to see if I can't track down some Undead, catch you later." I took off down the street on my bike, Hikari waving behind me.

Suddenly, I didn't feel so bitter anymore..I guess Hikari has that kind of effect on people.

Maybe things would turn out alright.

* * *

><p>"<em>Ok, you two, I know you don't trust the guy, but that was going way too far!" scolded Nagisa to the two fairies sitting before them.<em>

"_You really hurt his feelings!" exclaimed Honoka,eyebrows narrowed in disappointment and a little anger. "I know he's not completely human but you still had no right to say those kinds of things to him! He's got feelings too!"_

_Mipple lowered her ears in shame and turned to her love."Maybe we did go a little too far,Mepple."_

_The yellow bear folded his paws in thought."Hmm...well.."_

"_Oh, don't be so stubborn," groaned the tomboy rolling her eyes."Just own up to the fact you made a mistake and let's go apologize."_

"_He said he might be willing to forgive you if ya do." added Hikari sincerely. "And Honoka-san's right, he still has feelings like everyone else." She too felt that Mepple and Mipple had gone overboard this time with their antics..but she was too nice to hold it against them forever._

"_I don't know.." began Mepple, staring off into space._

_Nagisa smirked and turned her head."Fess up..or I won't share my chocolate with you for a whole month."_

_The furball froze at that declaration. He knew he had a choice to make, either admit he was wrong and keep his chocolate previleges but damage his pride..or clam up and keep it but lose access to the oh, so sweet chocolate..._

_Relunctantly, he went with the former."Oh,alright! Maybe I was wrong too-mepo!" He puffed out his cheeks in annoyance and humiliation._

_Mipple cheered and patted him on the back."That's my boy! It takes a big man to own up when he's done something wrong." She kissed him on the cheek, making him turn red._

_Nagisa smiled along with her friends."Ok, let's-" Before she could finish, Porun jerked up and leaped up on the table, hopping excitedly._

"_Porun!" Hikari's eyes widened as did the group's."What's wrong?"_

"_Message! From the Garden of Light-popo!" shouted Porun excitedly, he always enjoyed getting a message from his home dimension._

"_Eh?" the girls looked at each,shocked. It was quite rare to actually get a message from their benefactors, and even then it was usually just to check in on them, nothing major or anything._

_Porun changed into his transformation trinket form and popped open as a familiar womanly voice could be heard."Pretty Cure, are you receiving this?"_

"_It's the Queen!" gasped Honoka in surprise. This was certainly unexpected since they felt the Queen was usually too busy with royal duties to make house calls or the like._

_Hikari leaned in."We're receiving you just fine, it's wonderful to hear from you." She beamed in happiness._

"_I am glad to see you're doing well, other me," said the woman's voice with a small sigh."I just wished we could talk under better circumstances."_

_This caught the gang's attention, Nagisa asked."What do you mean,Queen?"_

_The Queen replied."Are you all somewhere private? What I have to say is not meant for just anyone to hear."_

"_Nagisa," The tomboy glanced to her dark-haired friend."Let's use your place, your parents and brother are out for the day,right?"_

_She nodded."Yeah, whatever the Queen has to tell us, it must be serious."_

_The trio packed up their fairies and headed for Nagisa's apartment._

* * *

><p><em>Now alone in the brunette's room, a hologram of the Queen appeared before them."It is wonderful to see you all again,my Legendary Warriors."<em>

"_Queen," Honoka and the others bowed to her."You said you had something important to tell us?"_

"_Yes," she nodded."You've noticed it too,haven't you? The strange power that has appeared in your world?"_

_Hikari's eyes widened as she caught on."You mean...the Undead?"_

_The Queen lowered her gaze slightly."I see,so that is what they're calling themselves," She couldn't show she was afraid though, she needed to remain firm. "And have you been in contact with this power?"_

_Hikari and her friends looked to each other, seeing them nod, she answered."I guess you can say we have. His name's Maxwell, James Maxwell. He appeared to us about a week ago just after we saw this strange meteor shower. At first, we didn't think he had much to do with this, but as time went on me and the others started to become..suspicous."_

_The ruler lifted a golden eyebrow."How so?"_

_Nagisa jumped in."He always kept vanishing just before one of these "Undead" creatures showed up, and it sometimes sounded like he was making up excuses to cover up what he was really doing..sealing them."_

_If the Queen could blink she would've done so."Sealing them,you say? Is he a Pretty Cure?" She asked with an tint of hope._

_However, the girls shook their heads."He's something called a Kamen Rider," explained Honoka."And from what he told us, these Undead have been around for thousands of years. There was this huge tournament between all of them where the winner would get the power to shape the world however they want."_

_Queen covered her mouth in disbelief."My..goodness..a power like that would be the equivalent of the Prism Stones." The situation was now more serious than ever."And how does this boy fit in?"_

"_He kinda absorbed the power of the most feared Undead,Joker," said Hikari nervously."It allowed him to use one of the sealed Undead to become the Mantis Undead, otherwise known as Chalice, and I think that's how he came up with the name Kamen Rider Chalice."_

"_So,he's the one sealing them..and I'm guessing he plans to take the power of the sealed monsters for his own?" quizzed the Queen, eyebrows narrowed._

_Nagisa shrugged."I..guess so, he's sealed two Undead so far, though we helped him seal the second since he seemed to be having a bit of trouble."_

"_Is that so?" asked the woman with a hint of irritation, this immediately put everyone on guard."Tell me, what are your feelings toward this boy?"_

_Hikari looked to her friends,frowning, they gave her a nod to go ahead. She turned to face her other self."Well, he's a bit on the strange side, kinda quiet, but he's very kind and has a good heart, plus he's always looking out for the less fortunate."_

"_I take it you trust him?" said the Queen, the annoyed tone in her voice a little more evident._

_Hikari thought that one over."I do, he hasn't done anything to hurt us, and he's been very informal while answering our questions."_

"_Alot of us were real suspicous at first," added Nagisa hesitantly,"And in a way, we still are..but I think we're willing to give him a chance if he'll let us."_

_The Queen sighed."From the way Hikari speaks of this boy, she must think highly of him," Nods all around with a little blush from the gold girl."However, the matter remains he is not one of the Pretty Cure, and if what you say is true, that he fused with the Joker, then it's questionable if he's even human anymore."_

_All three girls were jolted by this as shown by their widened eyes and slightly open mouths. Hikari knew she had to back up her friend."Queen, even if he's not one of us, he still fights for those who can't defend themselves, and I'm sure if given the chance, he'd make an excellent Pretty Cure."_

_She put a hand to her chest."Though he's not one physically, he's got the heart of a Precure and that's why...even if he's not completely human..I wanna believe in him!"_

_Everyone was stunned into silence, normally Hikari was very timid about voicing her opinions so seeing this was a real shocker."Hikari.." began Honoka._

_The woman turned her head slightly."You truly have become your own person,haven't you,other me?" Her next words had a hint of anger in them."But tell me..how long do you think he can suppress the power of the Joker?"_

_Nagisa didn't like where this was going."What are you saying?"_

_Queen focused her gaze on the warriors."Think about it, there's obviously something keeping the creature within him from breaking loose and destroying everything. We think it may have something to do with the creatures he is sealing."_

"_Well," inquired Honoka."He seals the monsters into cards and then he uses them to make himself stronger, that's what he told us anyways."_

"_Hmm," murmured the woman."So the cards are the key to his power," She looked up."Listen,you three, I knows you may have feelings for this man..but I must ask you to put them aside this one time."_

_Hikari gasped."Put them aside? What do you mean?"_

_The woman didn't lose focus."What I'm about to ask is very difficult, maybe one of the most difficult things you've ever done. But for the safety of your world, and the Light...you must defeat Chalice."_

"_WHAT?" screeched the trio of girls. "Y-You gotta be joking!" exclaimed Honoka furiously."Defeat Chalice? Hikari's friend? There's no way we can do something like that!"_

"_Yeah, what reasons could there possibly be for doing such a thing?" Nagisa pretty much roared, not believing what their benefactor was suggesting._

_The Queen let out another sigh, this would be more difficult than she anticipated."There are a number of reasons for doing this, but the one most important is that the more of these creatures he seals, the more dangerous he becomes. I'm sure you've seen it, the power of these beasts."_

"_Yeah,we have," admitted Hikari sadly, then she stomped out that thought."But James ain't like that! He's not one of them, and he never will be!"_

"_Are you so sure of that?" the woman all but hissed."Are you willing to weigh the future of the entire world on that belief of yours?"_

"_I.." Hikari didn't know what to say to that. She thought James was her friend, she wanted to believe in him..but hearing her other self talk she was reminded of what had happened to him. Her friends seemed to share a similar train of thought if the solemn looks on their faces were any indication. They also knew they needed to think of the well-being of their home too._

"_Do you even know what will happen once this Chalice seals all the Undead?" challenged the Queen."I know he seems nice now but how do you know he won't go berserk and turn on you?" She raised her hand."Allow me to show you what may happen."_

_She snapped her fingers and the area warped around them, once the scenery stopped blurring, the girls found themselves in what appeared to be their hometown..or what was left of it._

_The sky was a dark grey with booming thunder in the background and crackling flashes of lightning up above them. All around them was nothing but ruins, buildings toppled into each other, collapsed structures and rubble filled the streets. A thick layer of dust was spotted far off in the distance._

_Every manner of vehicle was in a state of disarray and even the streets were cracked beyond recognition..but all that paled in comparison to what they saw coming toward them._

_They were humanoid yet had a cockroach theme to their design. Their bodies were entirely black with green eyes and they gave off a terribly dark aura. An aura that gave off feelings of hopelessness and despair. _

_There were dozens, maybe hundreds of the beasts scattering across the city,tearing apart all they saw. Even when they came upon Verone Academy..they didn't hesitate to tear it down brick by brick. "No!" screeched Nagisa as she watched."Don't you dare lay a hand on that building! Noo!"_

_Honoka held her tightly as she bit back her tears."It's alright,Nagisa..it's not real.."_

"_I know this is difficult to watch," acknowledged the Queen."But I need you to stay strong..the worst is yet to come."_

"_What could be worser than this?" asked Hikari,more to herself than anyone. She herself could barely comprehend what was unfolding before her eyes. Was this what happens when Joker wins the Battle Royale?_

_In answer to her question, a figure could be heard coming through the mist. The roaches stopped their rampage and watched as a recognizable young man walked along, head down, not even acknowledging the creatures as he approached the ruins and saw all the dead bodies lying around._

"_James.." muttered Hikari in awe, both at seeing him here and the beasts not attacking him._

_The young man had tears leaking down his eyes as he collapsed to his knees and weeped."Why?..." He rearec back and roared."WHHHHYYYY?" His roar broke down the few remaining buildings as his skin shed away, revealing the beast underneath._

_A mantis-like creature covered in onyx armor,decorated with bits of silver, on his waist was a green and grey version of the Chalice Rouzer, his face was that of a monster's as a pair of antenna extended from his head and a visor covered the top half of his face._

"_Destroy.." It muttered,getting up."Destroy.." It rose a mantis claw as it glowed."DESTROY!" It unleashed the energy in a massive blast that decimated the remains of the city._

"_Stop it!" yelled Hikari."We've seen enough!" The image warped and the gang found themselves back in Nagisa's room, panting and sweating from the ordeal they just been through._

_The queen, seeing this,bowed her head."My sincerest apologies,girls. I only wanted you to see the scale of the threat you're up against."_

"_Queen," breathed Honoka."That creature..was it..Joker? Was that..James?"_

_The woman didn't look up."Yes..that is the fate of your world if the boy is consumed by his Joker persona. An unstoppable force will be released and life as humans know it will come to an end."_

_Hikari folded her hands together,solemnly glancing at the queen."But..as long as he keeps his cards that won't happen..it can't."_

"_Hikari," The dark-haired girl spoke up."We saw it ourselves, even with the cards, we don't know how long he'll suppress that beast for. It could be a couple days, a week, a month, but sooner or later, some way he won't have those cards on him..and than.." Her mind flashed back to the sight of the academy being destroyed._

"_Our home,everyone we care about, our dreams," Nagisa put her face in her hands."It'll all be gone."_

"_But is defeating Chalice really the only way?" asked Hikari, now on the verge of sobbing."Is that really the only way we can save everyone?" She really didn't wanna do it, she and James were just becoming friends, and he seemed like such a good guy._

"_Hikari," said the Queen in a gentler voice."Your friend has already been taken by the curse of the Joker. In time, it will take him over and make him into your enemy. When that happens, he will no longer be able to tell the difference between friend and foe, his only thought will be to destroy."_

"_If you value him so much, do you really think he'd want that?" challenged the ruler of the Light."Do you think he wants to become that monster?"_

_Hikari lowered her head and murumured."..No."_

_The woman nodded in a sagely manner."Good, then you know what you must do. Once you defeat him, I will take his soul and purify it of the Joker, and hopefully someday he will be reborn in the Light."_

_Nagisa sighed in defeat,"I guess..we don't have much choice." _

"_All we can do is make it as quick as possible." admitted Honoka, she hated the idea of doing this,but seeing the images the queen had shown shook her up a fair bit._

_However, someone didn't agree."I refuse." The group looked to see Hikari, her face set in a heavy scowl."I refuse..to lay a hand on him," She turned to her counterpart."There has to be some other way! I'll do anything besides defeat him!"_

_If the older woman could blink, she would've done so."Child, this hurts me as much as it hurts you, but you must be reasonable, this is somethi-"_

"_No,you're the one not being reasonable!" Hikari all but snapped."I thought the Precures were suppose to protect the life of this world, and that boy is a part of it, and you're telling us to get rid of him when he hasn't done anything wrong?"_

"_Hikari!" Honoka cried desperately."Think this through. You saw the same things we did. We need to stop the Joker before it's too late for all of us!"_

_The golden girl shot to her feet, the briefest hint of a glare on her face."I will have no part of this. Chalice is our friend, and I will not betray his friendship just because my other self says we should." With that, she picked up her fairies and walked out the door,slamming it shut behind her._

"_W-Wait!" called out Nagisa."Hikari!" She stared at the door, sadness entering her heart, and a little guilt._

"_Let her be," commanded the Queen."She has simply become too attached to the boy for her own good, and her feelings are clouding her judgement. Give her time, and she will come to understand that this is for the best."_

"_But.." began Honoka,frowning."What if she decides to tell Chalice?"_

_The queen was silent at that idea for a moment."..That will make little difference whether he knows or not. Regardless, you must stop him before he acquires too much power and brings your world to ruin," Her next words were almost stern."Do I make myself clear,Legendary Warriors?"_

_Nagisa gulped at this,not use to seeing her this way, but nodded."Y-Yes."_

"_I'll leave this matter in your hands than." announced the woman before vanishing._

_There was silence in the room as the duo sat. Their fairies came over and patted them on the hand,trying to cheer them up but it did little to help."I guess we should go." said Honoka quietly._

"_Yeah, the sooner we get this done, the better." murmured Nagisa. With thoughts of the Queen's words, and that haunting series of images still in their heads, they gathered their things and headed out the door._

* * *

><p>I sat at a cafe,watching the sun go down while sighing to myself."I searched all over this town and I haven't found one Undead." Just where on earth were they hiding? If I recalled correctly, only the Royal Class and above could formulate plans of any sort or control the lower ranked Undead.<p>

If they had already begun rounding up the Numbered to use as their servants, then they certainly worked fast. With the scene quiet, I was able to think. I wondered what was happening back in my own world, if it had been reported yet that I disappeared.

I mean,come on, if a giant vortex opening up in the sky over Tokyo and sucking a bystander in before closing doesn't make it to somewhere on the internet, I don't know what will..except for probaubly a giant peach landing on top of the Empire States Building. Excuse the movie reference.

But yeah, back to the topic at hand. Just what was going on back home? Had anybody noticed I was gone? Were there private investigators tracking down my whereabouts? Were there a bunch of scientists working on a way to open a ripple in time and space to where I was? Ok, now my thoughts were just getting preposterous.

All of a sudden, I heard frantic screaming and shot up,looking around for the source,seeing it in the form of a certain gold-eyed girl running up to me,panting."James..it's terrible.."

I blinked and put my hands on her shoulders."What is it,Hikari? Is it an Undead?"

She shook her head while gathering her breath."No..the Queen of Light..she contacted us, she knows you're the Joker!" I froze up at that. The Queen actually knew who I was? That certainly didn't sound good."What's worse..she told us..she.."

I gave her a gentle shake."Hikari! Tell me! What did she say?"

The gal turned her head."..She said that you would eventually lose control of yourself and destroy the world..before that happens, she wants us to defeat you."

My hands went numb and slipped off her shoulders at that. I swear my skin went a little pale too. This couldn't be happening. The Queen was always depicted as a benevolent goddess figure who was willing to give up her very life to protect the Garden of Light and its inhabitants. Heck, in the last episode she had even told Baldez, who had become the new Dark King, that she wished for Light and Dark to be in balance!

Although that was a bit of a weak message, since they had spent the last TWO SEASONS depicting Darkness as mostly evil and Light as entirely good. If playing Kingdom Hearts has taught me anything is that you can't have one without the other.

Yet here was the Queen basically putting a death sentence on my head, and using her own soldiers, the Precure to do it! "Hikari, how did she convince your friends?"

Hikari didn't bother to look at me."She showed us images of you as the Joker with some army of roach monsters wiping out all life on the planet."

That just got my blood boiling, at least a little. Now the woman was showing her own warriors visions that would normally traumatize the average human, make them even question their own sanity! Did I accidentily stumble into one of those Dark and Edgy Pretty Cure fics I'd been reading about before coming here?

I snapped myself back to the mess in front of me."What about you? What's your views on all this?"

She finally locked up to me and slowly shook her head."I don't really know..my head's saying to stop you..but my heart is saying to believe in you,"

I narrowed my eyes."When it comes to a contest between your head or your heart..I usually choose the heart, but you do whatever you feel is right."

Hikari didn't speak for a few moments, finally she announced with an air of pride."I..I want to listen to my heart, and believe in you.." She smiled."Kamen Rider Chalice."

I smiled back and nodded."Nice to know I have at least one person on my side," I looked around."We can't stay here, we gotta get moving and quickly." She nodded and we ran over to my bike and climbed on.

I strapped on my helmet and gunned the engine."Hang on." She put her arms around me and I tried not to blush as I kicked the pedal and road off down the street.

"Where are we going?" asked my ally over the sound of the bike.

I called back."To my house, it's in a secluded area, we can hide out there until your friends come to their senses."

She nodded and held tight to me as we rode. Normally, this would be a dream come true. Riding along on a motorcycle with a cute anime girl like Hikari holding me. However, right now I needed to focus on getting us to a safety zone before the others caught up to us.

Which,sadly, didn't take them very long. I was driving through downtown when the two girls ran out in the middle of the street and put up their hands."Hold it!" I skidded to a stop and lifted my visor.

"Oy! You realize I almost ran you over?" I called.

They seemed not to pay attention, focusing on my accomplice. Honoka stepped forward."Hikari, step aside, we'd never forgive ourselves if we let you get hurt."

I tore off the helmet and flashed a glare."And what about me? Where do I fit into your little circle of friends?"

The dark-haired girl looked away as Nagisa pulled out her transformation device."I'm sorry,James..but the Queen gave us this power..because of it, we can protect the things important to us. That's why.." She snapped."We gotta protect you from yourself!"

"Stop!" Hikari climbed off and stood in front of me with her arms spread out,facing her friends."Guys, James is a good person, he won't destroy the world!"

"You don't know that for sure!" shot back Honoka as she pulled out her own device.

"Maybe not," Hikari nodded."But I still wanna believe in him, he's done nothing but help since he came here. How can you turn your backs on him like this?"

"You saw the Queen's vision," growled Nagisa."Sometimes you gotta make hard decisions to do what's right. Now please step aside and let us do what we gotta do!"

"I won't!" fired back the golden girl."Even if the Queen says so, I can't let you hurt him! He's our friend and you're turning your back on him, I won't let you do anything to him!"

Alright, on one hand, this was pretty awesome seeing Hikari actually stand up to her friends and chew them out for being so inconsiderate, and I couldn't blame her for wanting to either. Hard to think that just being here for one week had this much of an affect on her.

On the other hand, I couldn't risk letting her get caught in the middle of a battle between me and the Cures. I knew they weren't too trusting of me since I came here but this was going a bit too far and I had to make a stand too.

I got off my bike and patted her on the shoulder,getting her attention."Thanks,Hikari, but I need you to stand aside on this one."

Her eyes widened."But..James.."

I nodded."I know, you don't want to see me get hurt, but I'd never be able to live it down if I let you get hurt," I grinned."Relax, I won't beat your friends..too badly."

Hikari gave a sad look before standing aside."Hey!" I turned to see a disapproving scowl on Nagisa's face."Why are you so casual with her?"

I scoffed."Because unlike you two, she doesn't bend over backwards and do whatever the Queen demands of her, she's willing to give me a chance which is more than I can say for you!"

The tomboy snarled."Enough talk! Honoka!" They grasped each other's hands."Dual Aurora Wave!" Before my eyes they transformed into Cure Black and Cure White and posed,ready to fight.

I gnarled my teeth and willed the Chalice Rouzer to appear before hauling out the Change Mantis card."I really didn't wanna have to do this, but I have just as much right to live as anybody else on this planet! And if I have to beat that into your heads I'll do it!" I spun the bike around and drove away from them a fair distance before turning around and roaring toward them.

"Henshin!" I swiped the card.**"Change." **The static field materialized over my form, altering my appearance into that of the Mantis Undead,Chalice. From there, the field spread over my bike,warping it and giving it a black,silver and red color scheme with two large red eyes on the head of it along with two large metallic mantis antenna. My bike had become Chalice's personal ride, the Shadow Chaser.

It was time to show these girls just who they were messing with.

(Play Kamen Rider Agito: Believe Yourself)

The duo seeing me approaching, somersaulted over me but I came to a quick stop and turned around. I knew from watching the show that Black was the stronger physically of the two, while White was the more agile one. Which means I would have to divide and conquer.

I raced toward White just as she landed and turned to me too late to stop me from ramming into her form and getting the gal caught on the bike's hood. I came to a sharp stop and she flew off, landing hard on the ground.

Burying whatever guilt I felt, I heard Black's scream and twisted around to block one of her punches with my forearm before ramming my other fist into her exposed chest, knocking her back. She didn't take too well to that as she went into a roundhouse kick,but I grabbed the heel of her boot and delivered my own kick to her midsection, she stumbled from the blow.

I looked over to where Honoka lied only to see she wasn't there anymore."Ah crud.." I looked up in time to see her doing a dropkick that collided with my chestplate, the force of it sending me off my bike and onto the hard ground. Didn't exactly hurt but it wasn't pleasant either. Glancing up through my visor, I spotted the duo regrouping before nodding to each other and leaping up into the air together.

However, what they said next surprised me."Double Precure Kick!" Wait, wasn't that a move the Fresh Precures used? I didn't have time to think before their boots collided with my crossed arms which I used to block, even though the force of it sent me skidding back a nice distance.

Sparing a look, I saw the two land on the ground before zooming toward me and slamming their palms into my gut, knocking some of the wind out of me and sending me flying through the air and landing with a loud bang.

"Darn." I groaned. These two had definitely earned the right to call themselves Legendary Warriors but I wasn't about to inflate their ego, there was butt-kicking to do. I glared up at them as they glared back at me."Alright, no more messing around." I whipped out the Chalice Arrow and let fly half a dozen shots at them.

They impacted against the ground in front of them,kicking up a small cloud of smoke and debris. The two jumped out of the smoke in dramatic fashion and I swung my weapon at them though they managed to kick off my shoulder and land behind me.

I growled and took aim before firing off some more energy bolts which the duo ducked and swerved their way. Deciding to go on the offensive, I slashed in a sideways manner,more to scare them than hurt them, only for Black and her partner to roll under my swing, the former dealt a left hook that made me see stars.

From there, White grabbed hold of my arm and kick out my leg before slamming me down hard. "Stop making this more difficult than it has to be!"

I roared."No way! Who gave you the right to decide who lives and who dies?" I brought my leg up and booted her in the back of the head,sending the white-garbed warrior tumbling over and rolling along the road.

"How dare you do that to White?" I spun around in time to see Black coming at with a karate chop. Raising the Arrow, I blocked it though I struggled to hold it before rearing back my right arm and punching her in the torso, the blow forcing her to step back.

With some breathing room, I shot up and went on the attack,dealing a handful of right hooks to her before twisting and bringing my leg up in a roundhouse kick that connected with her chin and launched the Cure onto her back. I took the time to detach my Rouzer and slot it into the weapon.

"You're forcing me to do something I really don't wanna do, Pretty Cure," I opened my holster."It doesn't have to be this way, we can be comrades, not enemies!"

The two groggily got to their feet,more furious than ever."Be friends with someone who's gonna destroy everything we hold dear?" The black-garbed girl snorted."Fat chance."

"And what about Hikari?" I asked."She's part of your little team too, are you really gonna discard her feelings just like that? If so, than some friends you turned out to be."

For a few moments, the duo had solemn expressions on their faces, and it looked like I'd gotten through to them, only for them to shake their heads and refocus their glare."Don't you try to worm your way out using Hikari as a shield!" They charged me again.

I clenched my weapon tighter."Fine, but you brought this on yourselves." I folded the blades of the Arrow back,forming a makeshift knuckle duster before drawing out the Beat Lion card."Forgive me,Hikari."I slashed the card through the Rouzer.**"Beat."**

The card's hologram appeared and was absorbed into my armor, sending powerful surges into my weaponless hand. Black came first and thrusted out a punch, I ducked under it and delivered a supercharged fist into her torso, she cried out in pain as she flew back and crashed into White, both of them impacting against the ground and kicking up another pile of dust and rubble.

I breathed deeply and resumed my stance, not lowering my guard for a second. I looked over to Hikari who had her mouth covered in shock at the scene before her. I bowed my head.

(End Song)

Hearing heavy breathing, I turned to see the dust clear and reveal both Black and White still on their feet, panting a little heavier than normal but otherwise still fine."Oh, still got the strength to fight,eh?"

"Don't underestimate us." warned Black."We may not look it, but we're pretty tough," said White with a small smirk. "And now we'll show you our true power." They both grasped hands and closed their eyes. Mentally, I went "Oh crap."

"Before our eyes..Hope.." began White."Into our hands, the power of hope.." added Black, a wash of gold energy shot up from the ground around them, a bright light shined from their wrists and formed into a pair of frilly metallic bracelets with ribbons tied to them.

"Darn Sparkle Bracelets." I cursed to myself as they reared back, now fully energized with their fancy Magical Mcguffins.

_Do not hesitate, hold nothing back._

I blinked, where did that voice come from? I glanced down and briefly saw the heart on my chest light up.

_They are your enemies, you must treat them as such._

Could it be? Was I actually hearing the voice of the Ace Of Hearts?

_Fight, Fight, and show them what real power is._

"I don't want to hurt them." I argued back."They're Hikari's friends. She's known them for a long time."

_And is that an excuse to let yourself be defeated? When there is so much left to be done?_

I clenched my fist. He had a point."No, you're right, if I die here, who will seal the Undead?"

_Good, now show me you are worthy of wielding the power of the Undead._

The voice faded and I could think clearly again. "You think you can take me down?" I hissed."Then come on and try!" I raced toward them as they ran toward me in return. Both me and Black reared our fists back and thrusted them. Their collision sent a ripple that uprooted part of the ground around us.

Both of us recoiled from the collision, Black clutching her hand as she hissed, my own hand losing sensation too. White somersaulted over her and came down with a drop kick using both feet. I rose my weapon and managed to block it just barely though the force still sent me soaring backward.

The tomboy leaped forward with her other fist but I brought my boot up and connected it with her chest though the force did little to stop her fist from colliding with my helmet. I saw stars and fell towards the pavement only to see White down there and leaping up while aiming her knee which collided with my ribs.

I yelped in pain before plummeting to the ground for real. Groaning, I watched the two regroup while watching me."Had enough?" teased Black.

Despite the pain, I chuckled."You think that hurt? My grandma hits harder than you, and she's dead!" Ok, bad time for that joke but what else could I use? I got to my feet and beckoned to them."Come on,hit me like you mean it."

Growling at my ignorance, they took off in a blur and started laying punches and kicks on me at a rapid speed that I could barely keep up with. Eventually, they landed enough blows to force me onto my knees.

I looked up and was glad to see them breathing heavily too."What? All out of juice? I expected more."

"Black.." murmued White. Her partner nodded."Let's do it." They grasped their hands, I knew what was coming, their signature move. "Black Thunder!" A bolt of black lightning struck Black's hand."White Thunder!" Ivory lightning struck White's hand.

Looking over, I spotted my bike, if I could just get to it, I could outrun it..maybe."Our beautiful souls.." announced White."Shall crush your dark heart!" finished Black. They readied to fire."Pretty Cure.."

I limped toward my bike."Marble.." I grasped the handlebar."Screw.." I went to climb on."Max!" The massive blast of twin lightning fired toward me..only to be stopped by a giant rainbow-colored barrier.

"Huh?" I,along with the girls, stopped and stared at my apparent savior."Shiny Luminous!"

"Enough!" She commanded,having transformed and deflected the huge energy beam."This fighting has got to stop! Please.." I heard her firm edge give way to something softer."Just stop..friends shouldn't fight friends.." She suddenly collapsed to her knees as the barrier crumbled.

"Luminous!" shouted both girls as they saw me catch her and settle her against the bike. They both watched the scene in disbelief and surprise.

"You protected me.." I murmured."..Why? What did I do to deserve your protection?"

She opened her eyes and smiled."I've seen your potential for goodness..how you'll put yourself on the line to protect others from harm..I just wanted to repay some of that."

I took her hand."You shouldn't have needed to go this far," My anger swelled up and I glowered at her so-called friends."And You!" They jumped."I am not only disappointed in you, I'm disqusted too, at you and your Queen!"

"The Queen for giving such an idiotic order, and you for actually following it! You talk of protecting the things important to you..yet because of your carelessness, Luminous had to take a hit meant for me!"

"Luminous," began Black,moving toward us."We're-" I snarled and lifted the Arrow in a menacing manner.

"Don't you even attempt to come close to her! You have no right being near her!" A gentle hand touched my wrist,lifting my mad rage.

"James..it's alright, I'm just a little tired." I looked down at her beaming face."Please, they owe so much to the Queen..I think they just let their devotion to her overtake their judgement..so don't be too hard on them."

I sighed and shook my head."You're too innocent and pure for your own good,Luminous."

The two girls went to each side of their warn out friend and held her."We're so sorry," said White with tears in her eyes."We shouldn't have taken your feelings for granted." added Black,who buried her face in the golden girl's dress.

The scene before me tugged at my heart strings a little and I started to feel remorseful at my outburst, even if they totally deserved it. At that moment, visions went through my head, the Cures, a rooftop, a armor-plated armadillo with guns.

I glanced up to the roofs of the apartments in time to see a weird anthro armadillo covered in brown leather armor with claws for hands, metal studs along its form, massively thick legs and clutching a pair of large steel revolvers in its hands. On its face it wore a sinister grin. This was the Category 2 Of Diamonds, Bullet Armadillo.

It rose its guns and took aim at the girls."Get down!" Using what little strength I had, I jumped to my feet and placed myself between the monster's line of sight and the girls. The fella let loose anyways, pounding with a handful of rounds from its guns as I growled in pain and fell to my knees again.

Seeing it had missed its intended target, the armadillo snorted in disqust before scampering off across the rooftops. "Chalice!" Forgetting how tired she was, the Queen's life crawled to my side.

"You..shielded us." wondered aloud Black in awe.

"But why?" White all but yelled."We treated you like a monster! We attacked you! Why turn around and do this?"

I looked up at her."It's part of the code of the Kamen Rider. To protect the innocent by any means necessary, and defend those who can't defend themselves. To punish those who do evil, but to never take lives needlessly." I laid back against the bike and slashed the Human Spirit card,reverting to my human self. "You guys couldn't defend yourselves so I took the hit in your place."

And the girls guilt trip got even worse, with them ready to burst into tears."First Luminous..and now you." muttered White,shaking her head."To think you would go this far just to prove the Queen wrong."

I sighed."Well, I can't just sit around when there's an Undead to hunt." Luminous took my hand."Huh?" She smiled and a soft glow went into my hand, and I felt my energy starting to return. "Luminous."

She helped me to my feet."It's not much, but if you really intend on fighting..than I'm gonna be right by your side, Chalice."

I nodded and turned to the others."What about you? What will you do?"

They looked at each other and White slowly nodded,Black followed suit."We caused you a great deal of pain, we need to do something to make amends."

"Good to hear," I walked over to my bike and climbed on."Follow me, I know where the Undead's going." I started up the engine and rode off with Luminous on the back and the others following close behind.

* * *

><p>We arrived in the park in time to see people running and screaming,trampling each other in an attempt to get away from whatever it was that happened to be attacking. I took off my helmet,scowling."This must be the place."<p>

The four of us rushed in,hoping to find one Undead running amok, but we didn't get one: We got two!

The first was the armadillo from earlier but with him was a strange humanoid green lizard wearing a suit of metal armor with spikes coming out of its shoulders. A long spiky tail stuck out of the backside, its head was reptilian with green eyes and covered in metal too. On its arm was mounted a sharp-looking sword which it swung at random people while its partner blasted away.

"Who are those two?" remarked Black nervously.

I clenched my fist."The armadillo is the Category 2 of Diamonds, Bullet Armadillo, and the other is the Category 2 of Spades, Slash Lizard."

White stepped up."Let us handle the armadillo, we need to payback what he almost did to Luminous."

I shrugged."Suit yourselves, me and her will take care of the lizard." She nodded in approval of the plan. I pulled out the Mantis card."And if we get out of this in one piece, I may even consider forgiving you for that little mess we had." I slashed."Henshin!" **"Change."** Once more, the static field engulfed me and I emerged as Chalice again. Nodding to each other, we took our stances and raced for our respective targets.

Pretty Cure and Kamen Rider working together, was this awesome or what?

(Play Pretty Cure: Shining Star)

I leaped forward and slashed the Lizard across the chest, raining sparks every which way and making him recoil. He hissed at me and swung his own sword at me. Our blades clashed and pushed against each other. Despite being the lowest number, the lizard still had a fair bit of strength and he shoved hard against me.

But I wasn't backing down, I brought my leg up and booted him in the chest, causing the fella to take a few steps back and give me some room to breathe. He recovered and thrusted his sword forward but I swerved to the side and slashed but he rose his weapon and blocked it.

Again, we shoved against each other, only this time the guy received a thump to the back of the head courtesy of Luminous. With his concentration broke, I pulled back my elbow and rammed it into his face before dealing several sharp kicks to his midsection. He caught my leg though after the third kick and flipped me over so I ended up face first in the dirt.

I looked up and spotted Slash Lizard racing toward me,weapon held high. I waited till he was close enough before sticking the bow into his gut. He looked down and I released bolt after bolt into his chest,he stumbled back from the power of the shots, groaning and spewing torrents of green liquid.

At one point, he had enough and started using his sword to deflect the shots so they went off into the surrounding area. The Undead made his way toward me while knocking aside my attacks. Just as he was close enough to strike, Luminous leaped in and used her brooch to conjure a giant barrier that shoved against our foe and launched him like a bean bag.

I nodded to her in gratitude before detaching the Rouzer and slotting it into the weapon's hollow section. The Undead and I stood while staring each other down. I knew I needed to wound him a bit more before I could finish him with the power of a Rouze card. We reared back our swords and charged the other.

Once close enough, we swung, landing a cut on each other, me on his ribcage, him on the upper part of my arm. We spun and clashed swords again and again. I jumped back to evade a slash then thrusted the end of my blade into his torso, making him groan and step back. Taking the advantage, I leaped into the air and slashed him down the middle, making him screech.

Seeing that he was vulnerable, I drew out Chop Head and slashed him through.**"Chop." **With the power flowing through me, I raced toward the weakened beast. He limply held up his sword but it was too late. I hit him with a chop to his torso area before running past. He gargled before falling over and being engulfed in a ball of fire.

I turned to him as the belt on him opened up,exposing the runes that signaled defeat. Taking out a Proper Blank, I threw it onto the fallen Undead's chest as it spun, glowing green, before sucking in the lizard and returning to my hand. Now depicting a scaly lizard with a blade for its tail, on the side was a spade symbol and a 2 with the word Slash. "That takes care of him." Luminous tapped me on the shoulder and pointed to where the others were fighting."Oh dang it."

The armadillo was blasting away with a nonstop barrage,keeping the duo from getting close, and even when they did, it would simply curl up into a ball and launch itself away from them, making their attacks almost useless. "A Rider's job is never done, is it?" I pulled back on the Arrow and fired my own barrage, striking the exposed areas of its armor.

Black looked up from where she lied."You guys.." I nodded."Figured you could use a hand." While pinning the armadillo down with arrows, the Cures jumped in and started pounding on the monster for all they were worth. However, it managed to throw them off.

"We gotta finish this here and now." I growled as I glanced at the Slash Lizard card. "But what do we do?" quizzed Black as she landed beside me.

I had an idea."Luminous, freeze him in place, then I'll use the Slash card and Black and White will power up my weapon with their Marble Screw. It should be enough to cut right through the armor."

"You sure?" I nodded, she summoned the Baton and fired it,paralyzing the fella."Now!"

I slashed the card.**"Slash." **An image of the beast appeared and was absorbed into my weapon,charging it with a powerful boost. "Precure Marble Screw Max!" The Cures fired the beam of lightning at the same time I raced toward the Undead. The thunder imbued itself into my weapon, making it glow black and white.

"Hrahh!" I slashed right through my foe then spun and slashed again with the other end,before coming to a stop. "And that's all she wrote." The Undead gurgled and snorted in pain before falling over and exploding in a large pillar of flame.

(End Song)

I watched my scorched opponent for a moment before hauling out a card to seal him in, but then I had second thoughts and turned to the Cures."Here," I chucked the Blank at them which Black caught. Seeing their quizzical expressions I explained."You lended me your power to take him down, so I figure you should get the honor of sealing him."

Black frowned at the card and handed it to Luminous."You do it, you believed in Chalice when nobody else did, so you do it." Gently taking the blank, the girl walked over to the fallen beast and placed the card on its body,allowing it to be absorbed.

She walked over and handed it to me,now showing a armadillo and a diamond with the number 2. "Thanks." This made four Undead sealed now. "Well.." I glanced up at Nagisa and Honoka."We're still alive, so I guess you're forgiven."

White turned her head,frowning."But..all these poor people.." I looked to where she did and was sad to see that a number of people were lying on the ground,bleeding with cuts and bruises aplenty,moaning.

I sighed."This is one of the more difficult parts of being a Kamen Rider, knowing you weren't able to protect everyone."

"Even so," inquired Black,trying to put a positive spin on things."If we didn't do anything, a lot more people could've lost their lives."

I nodded."You make a good point,Black. Even if you can't always save every single individual, you save as many as you can." I put away my new cards."So, still see me as an enemy?"

The Cures shook their heads,smiling happily."Even if you're not human, you're no monster," acknowledged White."A real monster wouldn't do the things you do."

"And even if it's an order from the Queen herself, we're gonna trust our hearts and put our faith in you." announced Black as she did a thumbs up.

Luminous walked over beside me and beamed at her friends."What do you say we all go out for dinner?"

"Great idea," agreed White as she changed back, Nagisa cheered."As long it ain't Takoyaki." The tomboy pouted at this and mumbled under her breath while her friend giggled.

"I'm good with that," I slashed the Spirit card and changed back to normal."Lead the way."

We left the park together, a bond of trust finally forged between us.

* * *

><p><em>The Queen sat in her throne room with her advisors, if her face could show expression it would be suspicion mixed with some disappointment."My queen," spoke the Elder."Has the strange power within the Garden of Rainbows disappeared yet?"<em>

_The woman let out a long sigh."Unfortunately,no," Everyone gasped at this."And what's worse, I feel it has only gotten stronger..this has led me to believe only one thing," They waited for her answer."..The Legendary Warriors have not fulfilled my request and disposed of the one known as Chalice."_

"_If anything, they maybe helping the warrior to gather the scattered fragments of this mysterious power." Another round of gasps could be heard._

"_Inconceivable!" roared Elder."The Pretty Cure are emissarys of the Light! They would never turn their backs on us, especially on a request from you, my Queen!" He started to cough and Wisdom patted him on the back gently._

"_Calm down,Elder. I'm sure they have good reasons for doing what they did." The little guy tried to assure his senior._

"_Nonsense," growled the old man."There is no possible reason for disobeying the Queen's request."_

_The giant woman wondered aloud."Perhaps I asked too much of them," The two before her looked up."If they were unwilling to defeat the one known as Chalice, it is possible he is either manipulating them..or their feelings for him are greater than expected."_

_That made their eyes widen. Obviously, this Chalice had to have great persuasive skills if he was able to coax them to his side in so short a time span. "I asked them to strike down someone they have strong feelings for..and I fear I have done more harm than good with this act."_

"_Queen," urged Wisdom."Do you..think this Chalice will retaliate against us?" _

"_That I do not know," admitted the Queen."Perhaps he will, or perhaps he will leave us be, but I have little doubt he will harbor negative feelings toward us now."_

_The Elder stared at the floor in deep thought for a moment before looking up."What do you suggest we do?"_

_The ruler had no idea."There is little we can do for the time being. We can only wait and pray he does not take out his anger on our kingdom. If he were to attack with the help of our own warriors, we would be almost powerless to stop them."_

_This made for a chilling thought. "You are dismissed." The elder and guardian bowed before leaving the room._

* * *

><p><em>The Queen of Light was silent. How could she curb the anger of this mysterious force? And why did she feel she had startled the hornet's nest?<em>

I chowed down the last piece of chocolate cake and laid back in my seat,patting my stomach."Oh man! I don't think I can eat another bite!"

"Me too." groaned Nagisa, having finished her sixth slice of cake."If I ate anymore I think I'd explode!"

"Well, you did basically eat half of the entire cake." I quirked,smirking."A bit much,don't you think?"

The brunette groaned."I can't help it if I have a sweet tooth! Besides, you don't judge me and I won't judge you..at least, starting right now." Forgot to mention, all through dinner the girls kept making comments about how sorry they were. No matter how many times I assured them it would be ok they kept at it.

"I still can't believe you stood in the way and took those shots for us," said Honoka with a hint of pride."That was both stupid, and incredibly brave."

I laughed lightly."I wouldn't be a very good Kamen Rider if I didn't fight in the name of justice, and be willing to put my life on the line for the defenseless and weak."

"Still, we owe you a debt." added Hikari, still with that warm smile of hers."And from here on out, you can count on us to help you seal the Undead,right guys?"

"You bet!" grinned Nagisa."I won't let these fellas take away everything we hold dear to us just for the sake of some twisted game." Honoka nodded in agreement.

I shoved my plate away."I'm relieved to hear that," I looked them in the eye."But I have to warn you, this is gonna be no walk in the park. The Undead are powerful and brutal creatures, who obey only one law, and will do anything to enforce it. If they sense you're strong, they'll come after you full force, and don't expect them to show mercy,got it?"

They all nodded, reminded of just how vicious our foes were and just how far they were willing to go to fulfill their "law"."You do realize that your Queen might not be too happy about going against her orders as well?"

Hikari shook her head."We'll use our powers the way we want to use them, the Queen will have no say in that, and if she wants to make a fuss about it, then she'll just have to deal with it."

Honoka smiled at her."You sure are after maturing a bit,Hikari." At this, the golden girl lightly blushed red.

I looked them over."Than it's decided," I put out my hand."We'll fight together, to seal away the Undead and protect this world and all the things we hold dear." The girls stacked their hands together in agreement.

It was decided, we were officially a team, I just hoped we would be ready for what was coming, sooner or later, the higher level Undead were gonna come knocking and we had to be prepared to face them.

The Battle Royale was only just beginning.

* * *

><p>"<em>Hmph, knew I shouldn't have relied on those two weaklings," grunted a male voice from within a dark alley as it walked over the corpses of several dead police officers. This world reeked of human stench and human constructs. He had been awake for barely even a few days and already he hated it all.<em>

_Humans were weak and pitiful, yet they scampered across the planet thinking they were the masters of all they saw. It was just sickening, to think the Human Undead had actually stood up and fought in their defense. He glanced down at the paper clutched in his hand."Chalice..so you have awakened,have you?" _

_The being chuckled as the streetlight reflected off blue armor-plated figure."But are you really the actual Chalice? Or just an imposter who's taken his name?" The entity lifted a strange sword onto his shoulder."If you are a fake..then you're a very convincing one. Being able to beat four of our kind with the help of those girls is no easy feat."_

_He crumpled up the paper and lit it on fire."Well than, let's see what you're made of, shall we?" The being walked off into the night, briefly revealing his avian facial features and feather-covered form before shifting into a more human appearance and vanishing from sight._

_Little did anyone know this strange person was actually one of the three Royal Class Undead._

_The Jack Of Diamonds, Peacock Undead, was in town._

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Whoa! And I am done! I'm sorry for taking so long but I've been starting my second term of University and that's been eating up most of my time. That, and I've been more stressed than usual for various reasons we don't need to get into.<p>

Also, this chapter is fairly long and has more stuff in it. We get some more background on the Cures, make a few references to other stories, find out the Queen isn't as benevolent as the series led us to believe, and Chalice and the Cures throw down, and Luminous makes a stand and..some other stuff happens.

Finally, it appears they're starting to trust him..but it looks like one of the Royal Classes is coming to face Chalice, what will happen? I got an idea, but I'm not saying anything just yet. Best to leave it a surprise.

I apologize if some of the characters seem a little out of their character, especially the Queen, but I just wanted to show that even she isn't perfect and always right and can make stupid,even selfish decisions on occasion. In this case though, she screwed up big time. I mean, she showed them Joker destroying the world just to convince them to stop Chalice! Definitely not one of her smarter moments.

Ok, Read and Review, and I'll see you next time!

Also, I'm still taking requests for characters to use the other three Rider Belts, and ideas for Rouze Combos are still welcome.


	4. The Past Becomes The Present

Alright, looks like a good few people are enjoying the story. Thanks goes out to those who added this to their Favorites and Alerts. It makes me glad knowing you appreciate my work. Ok, let's get the ball rolling again with the next chapter!

Once again, I don't own Kamen Rider OR Pretty Cure, I own James but that's about it..also, any references I make to other shows or games, I don't own those either.

Kamen Rider Chalice: The Pretty Cure Chronicles

Episode 4: Hikaru In Peril! Revive, Servants Of The Dark Power!

_The massive void floated in the vast emptiness of the cosmos. Despite what one may think at first glance, the anomaly was anything but a cosmic force of nature. It_  
><em>was the embodiment of the combined negative energy of the Dark Zone, Dark Fall, Nightmare, Eternal, Labyrinth, and the Desert Apostles. All the malice directed<em>  
><em>at the Legendary Warriors had taken on a physical form, and it went by the name of Black Hole. <em>

_The awe-inspiring entity was very much sentient, and capable of intelligent thinking. Its "birth" alone had sent ripples of dark power throughout the void of space._  
><em>Right now, this being had enough power to consume multiple worlds in a blanket of darkness without need to rest. So why did it hesitate? Why did it not make a <em>  
><em>move against the ones who had reduced them to this state?<em>

_There were actually a number of factors contributing, one of which being it wanted to wait and build its power to the highest point possible, so that crushing the_  
><em>Pretty Cure would be immensely enjoyable and satisfying. However, there was something else, and that something took the form of a unusual entity who had<em>  
><em>appeared seemingly from nowhere. This entity fought with ferocity and wielded strange powers, yet what caught Black Hole's attention even more..was the<em>  
><em>rather huge amount of dark energy within the creature, and it was so tempered too.<em>

_Black Hole knew that if they could get this "Chalice" on their side then their plans would be way ahead of schedule, and they'd have a powerful ally against the_  
><em>Light. But the question remained: Whose side was he truly on? If he really was aligned with either side, why was he only appearing now? Why did he not appear<em>  
><em>during the attack on the Garden Of Light? Or when the Dark King battled the warriors from the Garden Of Rainbows? Surely his help could've turned the tide in<em>  
><em>no time at all.<em>

_So many mysteries surrounded this figure, and Black Hole wanted to know the truth as soon as possible. It had a plan, but it was a little risky since it involved giving_  
><em>up a very small portion of its collective essence, though if they wanted to know the truth they had to be willing to make the sacrifice,even if it would take them <em>  
><em>longer to build up their strength.<em>

_It reached within its body and pulled out a large black and purple orb the size of a person. Despite how weak this certain individual was, he still had use."Arise,"_  
><em>growled the almighty force of darkness."Arise once more,servant of the Darkness. Return from the abyss and do as your master commands!" The orb pulsated<em>  
><em>several times before tendrils shot out and wrapped around it like a cocoon.<em>

_As the cocoon peeled away, a shape could be seen within, the figure had white hair and pale white skin with slitted eyes and wearing a suit of leathery armor with_  
><em>a cloak over it. The being looked up at the gargantuan face before him and immediately dropped to one knee."Black Hole-sama, your loyal servant Pissard is<em>  
><em>here and ready to carry out your will."<em>

_"Pissard," spoke the face."What is the last thing you can remember?"_

_The newly revived warrior gnarled his teeth."Those blasted Pretty Cures...I made a foolish mistake giving that girl back her fairy, and I paid for it with my life."_  
><em>His memory flashed back to the last moments of his previous life, being destroyed those blasted emissaries of light.<em>

_If Black Hole could nod, it would've done so."What if I told you there was a chance for redemption? To get your revenge on them?"_

_Pissard looked up in shock at this statement but quickly jumped to it."O-Of course! I'll do anything! Anything at all! I just want to see them suffer the_  
><em>way I have suffered!"<em>

_The dark entity's eyes glowed."There is a warrior within the Garden Of Rainbows named Chalice. He holds a significant amount of negative energy but_  
><em>it is unknown who his loyalties lie with. I want you to go there and use any means necessary to discover his true intentions, and if possible, convince him to<em>  
><em>join us. Do this and we will overturn your past failures,understood?"<em>

_Pissard nodded vigorously."Of course,sir," But a weird thought crossed his mind."But Black Hole-sama..how will I know who I'm looking for?"_

_Black Hole tilted his gaze down slightly."..You will know," There was an edge behind its tone that left no room for objections."Now go!"_

_The former servant of the Dark King flinched and bowed his head."Yes sir, your wish is my command." A spiraling black gateway appeared behind him and he_  
><em>stepped backward into it, the portal vanishing a few moments later, leaving only an empty void once more and the looming face of Black Hole.<em>

_"Chalice..your power will be ours, one way or the other!" The entity roared, as if sending a wordless challenge across the stars..._

* * *

><p>Three days had passed since that mess with the Queen Of Light, the Precure, and the two Undead who had shown up at the park, and for the most part,things had returned to<br>a normal routine for the people of the Garden Of Rainbows. There were many people injured by the monsters' attack, some more so than others. Nagisa was right though,  
>without us things could've turned out a lot worse than they did.<p>

Some good did come out of this as well. I'd finally gotten the Precures to trust me, and it only took me saving a random woman and her child, getting dissed by those  
>obnoxious furballs they call fairies, having the Queen put a death sentence on me, beat the crap out of Black and White, and take a barrage of gunfire from an anthro<br>armadillo..but I still did it,yes sir! Fine, more like Black and White beat the crap out of me,you happy? Good.

Heck, even the fairies were remorseful about the whole ordeal, and from what I recalled, Mepple could be a bit prideful and even stubborn when the mood took him  
>but I guessed that Mipple was able to talk him into apologizing, since the little yellow bear will do just about whatever she asks of him. But yeah, we were cool like<br>ice cream now pretty much.

Today was like any other day, I got up,washed,had breakfast, then went out and got on my bike before riding off to Akane's Takoyaki wagon for some pointers on  
>making those octopus dumplings. I stopped my bike near the wagon and climbed off before slowly waltzing up to the vehicle. But just as I went to knock, a squeaky<br>voice cried."James!" I groaned tried not to facepalm as I turned in time to receive a tackle to the face by both Porun and Lulun.

Gotta say, for little guys, they sure were strong. "Oof!" I ended up on my back with them on my chest jumping up and down happily. I grinned cheerfully."Hey  
>guys,what's up?"<p>

"You came-popo,You came-popo!" cheered Porun,gosh how much sugar did the girls feed him? "Did you come to play with us?"

I chuckled and looked away."Actually, I kinda wanted to see if Akane could give me a few more lessons on making Takoyaki.." Seeing the sad expressions on  
>the two's faces made my heart ache, I sighed."..But I suppose she won't mind if I skip one lesson to play with you."<p>

At this, the fairies cheered."We'll hide and you count to ten and come find us-lulu." said Lulun. I nodded and put my hands over my eyes. Quietly, I counted to  
>ten and opened them. As I should've expected, they were gone.<p>

"I'm warning you guys, when I was younger I was the king at hide and seek." I called out but got no response though that was kinda expected. I mean, if they did call out I would  
>be able to tell where they are and boom, game over. That wouldn't be fun for any of us. So, I set about looking for them, I checked under the tables, in the bushes and beneath<br>the wagon.

Giggling was coming from somewhere but I couldn't tell where. I climbed up the tree, thinking they were hiding up there, only to see nothing."Huh, wonder where those  
>cute little fluff balls went to.."<p>

"James?" I looked down and spotted Hikaru standing under the tree,looking up at me curiously."Why are you up in that tree?" She tilted her head in that adorable manner I remember from the show.

Figured she deserved an answer."Eh, me and your fairies are just having a little game of hide and seek," I scratched my head."Have to say, these guys sure picked a great  
>hiding place." I kept exploring the tree to see if they were up here, only to hear the golden gal giggle sweetly.<p>

"Maybe you're just not looking close enough," Skeptical, I blinked at her, she simply smiled."Just think about it, they might be right under your nose."

"Under my nose?" I leered at my jacket."Don't tell me.." Whipping it off, I inspected the hood to see Porun and Lulun snuggled together, chuckling."There you are!"

"You found us! Hikari, he found us-popo!" Porun jumped down with Lulun into their partner's waiting arms. I know I've said it before but that girl's smile was so warm  
>and friendly you couldn't help but feel just a little bit better when she flashed it. Her laugh was nice too...ah geez, get it together man! She's a fictional character, not an<br>actual person...oh wait, that's rude, of course she's real, she's right in front of you, why is it so hard for you to accept after everything that's happened so far?

And to be frank, I did get the impression she had feelings for me. I mean, what other reason would make her fight so hard to defend me? Still, it was way too soon to  
>pursue any sort of relationship. Best to just stick together as good friends for the foreseeable future. We would need strong bonds to face the coming trials.<p>

After petting and stroking her fairies for a bit, she looked up at me."Porun and Lulun sure like you, ya know that?"

I turned my head,embarassed."Y-Yeah...they took to me quicker than Mepple and Mipple, that's for sure."

Hikari's smile became even sweeter."They're younger, so they're not as cautious meeting new people. Also, they got loads more energy to use."

"A bit too much energy sometimes," said a certain someone with a soft sigh. We turned our heads to see Nagisa standing there without Honoka. It was a Saturday  
>and she had a lacrosse bag slung over her shoulder. "But hey, what you gonna do?" She wore a small grin while watching us.<p>

I scooted down the side of the tree and slid my coat back on while asking."A lacrosse bag?"

The brunette blinked and offered a glance at her bag before laughing and scratching her neck."Right..forgot to mention, I'm kinda the star athlete on my school's  
>lacrosse team."<p>

"She's the best," added Hikari."She's always practicing hard and willing to help out new recruits with tips and lessons. She's even won a few tournaments."

I whistled to show I was impressed. Nagisa sweatdropped. "Hikari, you're giving me way too much praise. I just does the best I can."

"And that's why you're so great," encouraged the golden gal."Even if she's not the captain anymore, that doesn't stop her from doing her part for the team. She really is amazing."

Now Nagisa was turning red from embarassment."Aw, shucks..."

I chuckled to my friend."You might wanna ease up, your friend's turning red as a tomato." Seeing my point, Hikari let out a small giggle. Gotta say, it actually  
>felt kinda good to just relax and talk like normal people, ignoring all the tension that been rearing its head since I arrived. "That reminds me, where's Honoka?<br>Ain't she usually with you, Nagisa?"

The tomboy looked around in answer to my question."She said she'd be here so we could walk together to my game. I got a practice session today and we  
>agreed to meet up before heading to it."<p>

Hikari tapped her chin."Strange, she's usually one for being punctual." I could only nod in agreement. Honoka wasn't the brains of the team for  
>Nagisa had the better physical capabilities, mentally, she left much to be desired, and that's putting it nicely. Heck, even the tomboy didn't feel too bad admitting<br>it...usually.

"It's not like her to be late," commented Nagisa while crossing her arms and tilting her head."I wonder what's keeping her."

At that exact moment, Honoka's voice rang in our eardrums."Nagisa! Hikari! Maxwell!" We looked to see Honoka running toward us, out of breath. What was  
>it with everybody running everywhere lately? She stood there, bent over, breathing and rasping."Did you..check the news..this morning?"<p>

Surprised at this, we shared a glance before shaking our heads."Nope, I don't even remember turning on the TV this morning."

Finally catching her breath, the long-haired girl straightened with something akin to a frown on her features."The police discovered some dead bodies in a  
>warehouse the other night." That made Hikari gasp in shock while Nagisa scowled.<p>

I lowered my head sadly, even if death was a part of life, being taken before you've lived a full existance, and in a manner like murder, was just too cruel. "What  
>were the condition of the bodies when they found them?"<p>

Honoka blinked at my admittedly slightly morbid question but answered."Well, it appears they had been dead for some time, a couple days at least, but what's really peculiar is the means by which they died."

Seeing skepticism on our facial features, she elaborated."It appears a few were cut down by a razor sharp object, others were lit on fire and a couple were found with strange blue feathers stuck in their necks." She focused her gaze on me."James, does this sound like anyone you know?"

I swear my face went pale at her explanation as I took a seat in a chair, Hikari saw this and ran over beside me."W-What's wrong?"

I massaged my forehead, I didn't wanna believe it, heck, I didn't even think one of THEM was gonna show up so soon, but there was no denying the evidence. Blue feathers, flames, really sharp sword. It was all there. "Guys, I don't wanna freak you out,but.." I looked up."I think one of the Royal Class Undead is making his move."

The effect on them was almost instantaneous, all three went into stupified mode."Ehhh?" So much for not freaking out.

"A-Are you serious?" cried Nagisa. "An actual Royal Class is here?"

I nodded."And I'm pretty sure I know which one it is..sadly, he's one of the worst out of the twelve."

Hikari took my hand, gosh her touch was warm."Please, I don't care how horrible it is, you need to tell us about him."

Seeing the pleading in her eyes, I sighed."Ok..he's known as the Jack Of Diamonds, Peacock Undead. He's very good at manipulating others to do his bidding  
>through some form of hypnosis, also he's capable of telekinesis and can even control fire. Combine all this with his natural strength as a Royal Class and you<br>have yourself a very dangerous enemy."

"When you put it that way, he really does sound dangerous." acknowledged Honoka. "And we can't forget that the Royal Class can assume human form."

"The good thing about that is they can only assume one human form, so if we meet them once, we'll know what to look out for next time." I added,trying to  
>lift everyone's spirits just a little.<p>

"If we survive-mepo." grunted Mepple from his pouch. "Thank you for that,Mepple," said Nagisa with a roll of her eyes."You're an inspiration to us all."

"Well, we can't go around looking over our shoulders for the rest of our days" interjected Hikari."We have to live our own lives too." Ok, that much I  
>could agree with. The girls needed time to be themselves as well. They couldn't spend all their days doing nothing but non-stop fighting, that wasn't healthy.<p>

"Exactly," Nagisa said as she gave her bag a tug."Which is why you guys should come cheer me on. It'll be a great way to relax. I knows I need it."

Hikari turned to me with a smile."What ya think? Should we join them?"

I shrugged."Why not? It'll be a way to pass the time." I stood up and we proceeded to walk off. I wasn't fully ready to trust the girls yet since they were so  
>quick to turn on me once, but I knew I needed to cut them a little slack. After all, they did owe a lot to their benefactor, and the Queen HAD pulled a dirty<br>trick to get them to agree to fight me. If anything, the woman was the bigger problem, but I'd deal with her later.

Besides, I'd always wanted to see one of Nagisa's lacrosse games in person.

* * *

><p>Ok, if you watched any episode of the first two seasons of Pretty Cure, you know Nagisa takes her lacrosse VERY seriously. Like almost dangerous<br>kind of serious. Now, the intensity you saw her play with on the screen? That's N-O-T-H-I-N-G compared to seeing it in person! I swear, my eyes  
>nearly fell out of their sockets trying to keep up with the ball.<p>

Me, Honoka and Hikari sat in the stands, watching the tomboy sprint back and forth across the field at lightning speed, passing the ball with expert  
>prowess and skill and shouting commands to her fellow players. All the while, her two fellow Cures were yelling encouragement at the top of their<br>lungs.

"Come on, Nagisa! You can do it!" "You're the best,Nagisa!" "Don't hold anything back!"

I looked at them questioningly."You know, with all that yelling you do, I'm surprised you haven't strained your vocal cords yet."

Honoka chuckled."Well, we are technically her encouragement squad, and it does make her feel better knowing we've got her back."

"I can tell, she's like a lacrosse-playing machine out there." I commented while gesturing to the field.

"She always has been," remarked Hikari with a nod. "But that just proves how passionate she is about the game."

"Ya make a good point," I acknowledged."But the thing to remember about any game is not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game."

"True enough," said Honoka beaming,"Though I'm not sure how much Nagisa-san would agree with that statement, she enjoys Lacrosse but even  
>she can take it a bit too seriously at times." No arguing with that statement.<p>

Out of the corner of my eye though, I spotted the lacrosse ball zipping towards Hikari. "Look out!" She looked up in time for me to thrust  
>my hand in front of her face and catch it. The blonde girl gasped as I turned my gaze down to her."You alright?" She nodded."Good."<p>

"Hikari!" Nagisa ran up to the stands, worried as I frowned at her."I'm really sorry, I must've misjudged my aim."

"You're lucky I was here than," I spat back."That ball could've tooken your friend's eye out! You really need to watch yourself better."

The tomboy frowned."Hey, I said I was sorry. It was an accident, those things happen."

"Whatever," I sighed before tossing the ball to her."Just make sure it doesn't happen again, alright?"

She snatched it out of the air before giving a slight nod."Yeah,sure." She went back to her game as I sat down again.

"James," I turned to Hikari who looked a little worried."Thank you for that...but you didn't have to be so hard on Nagisa-san. She didn't  
>do it intentionally."<p>

I nodded and tilted my gaze down."I know..it's just,well..I guess I'm still a little on edge after what happened that day. Your friends turned on  
>me in the blink of an eye. Even though I did nothing to earn their wrath, they went ahead and attacked me anyway, just because their "kind and<br>benevolent" Queen told them to,"

"I realize she used a pretty dirty tactic to convince them, but that still doesn't fully excuse them from blame. They should be capable of making  
>their own decisions about things, not letting some "divine, all-knowing entity" decide for them."<p>

"The Queen is not all-knowing," remarked Hikari."The moment she told us to defeat you, I knew I couldn't go through with it. It was just too  
>cruel, and after she showed us that vision, I kinda felt a little disqusted that she'd sink so far. I just hope she realizes her mistake and is willing<br>to make amends." Her face took on a wishful look.

I sat back and folded my arms."We'll see...so is there a point to this?"

She snapped out of her state and turned to me."I just..don't want you to hold what happened against Nagisa and Honoka, they are really wonderful  
>people, and great friends. Yes, they made a mistake, and they know that. I think bringing you here is one of the ways they're trying to make up to you."<p>

Alright, I have to give her credit, what she was saying made a good amount of sense. They were, at the end of the day, only human, even if they had badass  
>superheroine powers that could beat up monster versions of everyday objects. I sighed."Fine, fine, I'll try and ease up on them, doesn't mean I have to<br>like it though."

The gal smiled and patted me on the hand."Thank you." Have I already mentioned how warm her touch is?

"Yeah," I pulled out the sealed Undead we had so far and looked them over. Honoka spotted me doing so."Oh, right. How many Undead have we sealed  
>so far?"<p>

I laid them out in the corresponding suits."Well, with the Joker sealed inside of me, and the Mantis and Human Undead I own, that's three right there. Four if  
>we add in Chop Head, Slash and Beat make six, and Bullet makes seven."<p>

"That's seven Undead sealed," said the blue-haired gal with a relieved sigh."That's good, the sooner we seal them all the better."

"We can't get too comfortable," I cautioned."We still got the higher Numbered Undead to deal with, and the Royal Class are starting to make their own moves, plus I have absolutely no idea where the Category Aces are." I spread my arms while doing a shrugging motion. "I'm not gonna lie, we got a ton of work ahead of us before we can even think of calling it quits."

"Sometimes I wonder if our job as Pretty Cure will ever be over," grunted Nagisa as she came over while wiping the sweat off with a towel."I swear, it seems  
>like once every few months we're dealing with some crazy new threat from the stars."<p>

Once more, I would have to play dumb."Um..what are you talking about? I thought you said your fights were over."

Nagisa nodded."We thought so too, but there's something you need to know first, we're not the only Precures around these parts."

"There's way more than just us three," confirmed Honoka, nodding."There's Saki and Mai who protect the Land Of Greenery, they're called Cure Bloom and  
>Cure Egret, but they have alternate forms Bright and Windy. After them is Precure 5, Nozomi, Rin, Urara, Komachi and Karen. Dream, Rouge, Lemonade, Mint<br>and Aqua and they got a helper named Milky Rose who is actually Milk, a fairy from Palmier Kingdom." I tried not to look unnerved at the last name.

"Then there's Clover Town which is protected by Fresh Pretty Cure, Love, Miki, Inori, and Setsuna, the last girl use to be an enemy until she reformed. They're  
>Cures Peach, Berry, Pine, and Passion. Last group we know about is Heartcatch Precure who live in Kibogahana. There's Tsubomi, Erika, Itsuki, and Yuri. In order, Blossom, Marine, Sunshine, and Moonlight."<p>

_And let's not forget the Suite Precure_. I thought to myself but didn't say out loud. Instead, I chose to open my eyes as wide as possible."Wow, that's almost 20 Cures."

"I was just as amazed as you are," said Hikari, a gleam in her eyes. "But it was also a huge relief, knowing we weren't the only Precures in the world."

I scooped up the cards and put them back in my pocket as an idea came to mind."Say, you wouldn't happen to have any means by which we can contact them,would ya?"

"Hmm," Honoka put a hand to her chin and pondered."Come to think of it, we did swap email addresses and phone numbers last time we met. We'll get on our computers later and send them a message."

I nodded."Good, the more of them who get involved the more lives we can save, cause sooner or later, the Undead are gonna make themselves known in those parts, and it's best your fellow Cures know what they are going up against before they charge in."

"Immortal monsters who are over 10 000 years old and whose only purpose is to fight until only one is left and the survivor gains the power to reshape the entire world," Nagisa rhymed off with a deep groan."Oh, they're just gonna love hearing that."

"Do you think we should also tell them about..you know.." Hikari leered in my direction but kept an eye on Honoka.

The brainy girl shrugged. "It's his decision," She turned to me."What do you think? Should we tell them about you and your connection to Joker?"

Alright, decision time, did I let them go ahead and tell the Cures about my link to Joker, and risk them jumping the gun on me like Nagisa and Honoka had, or keep this to ourselves and maybe stir up a bigger pot of trouble later on down the road? Decisions, Decisions...

"Um, well," I scratched the back of my head out of nervousness."I.." But I didn't have a chance to say anything for screaming and shouting suddenly met our  
>ears."Huh?" We looked around in time to hear something that I hadn't heard in ages, something that I figured had been done away with ages ago.<p>

"Zakenna!" The mere roar alone was enough to make the girls freeze up.

They looked at each other wearing concerned faces."You don't think.." began Nagisa. "It can't be.." added Honoka negatively. We all turned and there stomping across the field was a giant water fountain Zakenna, its hydraulics made up the arms and legs and it had those classic eyes every Zakenna had,along with a large gaping mouth. From the pumps on top, it let fly streams of water that obliterated chunks of the ground with just sheer force.

"A Zakenna!" cried Hikari over the sound of people running and screaming.

"A what?" I yelled back. She turned to me."Zakenna are dark spirits that come from the Dark Zone and possess items in our world to gain a physical form..but we already beat the Dark King, so why?"

I held my head. Our work load just kept getting heavier and heavier.

* * *

><p>Pissard stood on top of a far off perch, watching the chaos with a sense of satisfaction."Splendid, go my Zakenna, spread fear and panic among the humans. This<br>ought to bring those blasted Cures out of hiding, and Chalice too."

While it was true Pissard was loyal to Black Hole completely, he himself wanted to see what their potential ally was capable of. _Besides, Black Hole did say how I went about finding him was up to me_. He thought.

The former member of the Dark Zone smirked to himself as he watched his creation go about spreading chaos and pandemonium.

* * *

><p>"Honoka, Hikari, James," Nagisa commanded in a stern tone as each of us pulled out our transformation devices, or in my case card, the belt materializing around my waist as we raced down to the field and stood in front of the monster.<p>

It stopped and roared its name at us. I swear, the monsters in Precure reminded me of Pokemon at times, only being able to say their name, or just have a very limited form of speaking in general. "Let's Go!" yelled Nagisa as she took hold of her partner's hand and they flipped open the Communes.

"Dual Aurora Wave!"

"Luminous, Shining Stream!"

"Henshin." **"Change."**

(Play Pretty Cure: Heart To Heart)

Pillars of light engulfed the girls as waves of black static energy consumed me. From the two differing masses of energy, we appeared as our other selves.  
>Nagisa as Cure Black, Honoka as Cure White, Hikari as Shiny Luminous, and me as Kamen Rider Chalice. Clenching my hand, the Chalice Arrow summoned<br>itself to my grasp.

We nodded to each other and jumped away into different directions as a geyser of water shattered the area where we once stood. I pulled back on the Arrow and pointed it, letting fly several energy arrows that exploded against the beast's side, making it growl in pain and stumble before focusing its gaze on me. Pointing the nozzles on its hands, it let loose a batch of high-powered bubble shots.

I rolled to the side and quickly scampered to my feet before taking off like a bat out of hell to outrun them. As I did so I pointed my bow and kept letting loose shots one after the other. Some of them missed altogether, but a few did strike him in the eyes, causing him to stop and roar while trying to get its vision back.

Black and White took this as a chance to really deal some damage. They reared back and somersaulted off the ground together. As they soared toward the Zakenna, they pulled their fists back and smashed into the monster's face with enough force to send it skidding back a nice number of feet. Landing on the ground, the girls struck fighting poses as the enemy raised its arms and fired another round of high-powered water bullets.

The two cartwheeled away from each other to avoid the barrage and ran toward their foe, even as it kept firing those explosive drops. They simply zig-zagged a way through and each Cure ran to the left and right sides of the monster. It looked between them and pointed its nozzles only to receive a face full of laser shots from my weapon.

Seeing an opening, the two leaped up, Black going into a drop kick while White went into a roundhouse kick. The two attacks slammed into each side of the monster, earning a loud cry from the Zakenna. The duo jumped away and landed beside me and Luminous. "Hey Chalice," I turned to the golden gal."What exactly does that Bullet Card of yours do?"

I shrugged."It strengthens my long-range weapons, why do you.." I trailed off as it dawned on me what she was referring to."Oh.." I smacked the side of my helmet. "I am such an idiot." The Zakenna opened its maw wide and let loose a huge stream of water. Luminous jumped out in front and conjured a barrier with her brooch. The stream collided with the shield but the girl held tight.

While she was doing that, I detached the Rouzer from my belt and slotted it into the Arrow before opening my holster."I only have four Rouze Cards, so I'm gonna need to be picky of when and how I use them," I pulled out the Two Of Diamonds and slashed it through the Rouzer.**"Bullet."**

The image of Bullet Armadillo absorbed itself into my weapon as I took aim at the water-spewing behemoth. I'd have time to worry about where the Zakenna came from later, right now I needed to do my part in bringing it down. Energy surged into the center part of my weapon as the stream finally seemed to subside."Luminous, drop the barrier!"

She nodded and lowered her arms, the shield dissipating as I pulled back on the Arrow tightly, a rain of powered-up arrows burst forth and impacted with huge velocity, triggering a number of small explosions that made the Zakenna stumble back in pain. White raced up to the thing's legs and pulled her own leg back before swinging and knocking one of its feet out from under it, causing the giant to drop to one knee.

"Now's our chance to get rid of those pumps on its shoulders!" roared Black before charging forward. Not wanting to be left behind, I ran forward as the Zakenna rose its arms and swung them down like hammers, attempting to smash us into the earth. We both skidded to a stop before doing a small hop back to avoid becoming pancakes then raced up the length of the arms.

The pumps on top popped open and let loose rounds of water pellets in a machine gun fashion. Black crossed her arms over her face and just endured the brunt of the attack while I on my end countered by firing arrows from my bow. The two types of projectiles collided and canceled each other out with small pops and bangs. I swatted aside some of the shots as I reached into my holster and drew out my Chop Head card, in a flash I swiped. **"Chop."**

The image that appeared fused into my body as I felt the power surging through me. I nodded over to Black as I pulled my arm behind me and we leaped into the air. Black struck first, crashing her fist into the pump, and I followed suit, bringing my arm down in a karate chop that split through the other pump like it was a pile of rotted wood.

We kicked off the giant's shoulders and landed safely on the ground. The Zakenna moaned and refocused itself, now seeing we were a threat. As it went to point its nozzle hands at us however, Luminous got directly in front of the monster and conjured her shield again. This time it expanded and pushed against the monster, hard enough infact to send it flying like a bean bag across the field, landing with a rather loud thump.

"I never get tired of seeing you do that." I quipped to her, it was the truth too. Luminous giggled at my comment."Thanks, you're pretty good yourself."

Black shoved her face in between us, wearing a deadpan expression."Oy,can you two save the compliments for later? We got a giant, water-spamming freakazoid to take down unless you forgot."

"Hmph," I grunted in mock disappointment."Fine," I reached into my holster again and pulled out the Slash Lizard card."Let's take this fella down,already."

The tomboy Cure nodded as she grasped her partner's hand and they ran toward the monster as it opened its mouth and fired another massive stream of liquid. Not wasting any time, White flipped into the air while Black rolled under the stream and came up beside the leg. She pulled back her fist as White swung her leg back. The brunette smashed her fist into the leg,causing the giant to wobble about. White did a drop kick on its head, the combined force of both attacks made the Zakenna tumble over and smash into the ground.

"Now!" I scanned the card.**"Slash."** The hologram moved into my weapon as power coursed through it. I turned to the golden gal."Care to give me a boost?"  
>She nodded and held out her hands. I dashed toward her and hopped onto her hand, Luminous then tossed me high into the air over the fountain monster. I<br>raised the Arrow over my head as the Zakenna looked up in time to see me descending on it.

"Zakenna!" It rose its arms in an attempt to block me but I swung anyways, cutting right through and down the middle of it. An explosion occurred and the arms fell to its sides as the hulking beast collapsed to one knee. I stopped for a moment to watch. Were the Rouze Cards really this powerful?

Granted, they did have immortal fighting beasts sealed inside them, and I was using the power of the Undead's strongest fighter, but still, the fact that I could bring one of the Dark Zone's monsters to their knees with this..was both awesome and a little scary.

_Is this why the Queen was so afraid?_ I thought to myself then shook my head and walked back to the girls."He's all yours,guys."

Luminous nodded and summoned her Heariel Baton which blasted the girls with golden light. Black struck her pose. "Abundant Courage!" White followed  
>suit."Overflowing Hope!" Luminous called."Together with the embrace of sparkling light!"<p>

Black and White held hands and cried."Extreme..." Luminous shouted."Luminario!" A giant gold heart appeared before the Cures and they thrusted their hands at it, summoning a massive wave of golden mist that rocketed forth from the heart and surged toward the Zakenna, engulfing it completely. The monster roared before being blown away in a huge gold-colored explosion.

The Zakenna stars broke off and whined while running away as the area returned to normal. The girls smiled at each other and then at me. I nodded and gave them a thumbs up as a sign of a job well done.

(End Song)

But just as we were about to turn back to normal, the sound of clapping reverberated through the air. We all were caught off-guard by that and looked every  
>which way for the source. "Who's there?" shouted White."Show yourself!"<p>

That's when I saw the figure standing on top of a pole."There!" I pointed and the girls turned, seeing the figure. The guy, probaubly realizing he knew we saw him, jumped down and landed not too far from us. Who it was...well, let's put it this way, it was the LAST person I was expecting. The guy who I personally saw as one of the weakest villains in Precure history, heck, even Karehann was more threatening than this guy. Heck, he didn't even last five full episodes.

Who am I talking about? It was Pissard of the Dark Zone.

….I'll give ya a moment to let that sink in.

Yeah, there were a million questions in my head right now. What was going on? Why was he here? Better yet, HOW was he here? Should mention too that  
>as he scanned us with his eyes, a dangerous glint seemed to appear in them as he focused on me a bit longer than the others. That was not a good sign.<p>

Black stammered."P-P-Pissard?" Her eyes were wide like dinner plates and she was sweating up a storm. I couldn't really blame her. I would likely be doing  
>the same thing if I found out that the dude I'd defeated years ago was back from the dead.<p>

"It can't be.." murmured White in disbelief."How are you here? We beat you ages ago!"

Pissard chuckled darkly and wagged a finger at her."That, dear White, is my little secret," He grinned."I must say, I am truly impressed. When last I saw you,  
>ya were still naïve little school girls who barely even grasped the concept of being the Legendary Warriors. My,my, how much you've grown since than."<p>

"Save us the flattery!" roared Black with a swing of her arm."Did you come back for revenge?"

The former minion of the Dark King calmly chuckled again."Revenge? Oh no, as tempting as that is, today is strictly about business."

White blinked in surprise."Business? What are you talking about?"

Pissard wore a smirk on his face as he raised a finger and pointed...at me! "You!"

Under my helmet, I swore I was starting to sweat. I needed to remain calm and firm though."Yes?"

He took a step toward me."Are you the one they call Chalice?"

I made a shrugging motion."Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. What's it to you?"

The fella smirked."Oh, nothing much...except that my master has shown an...interest in you."

Ok, that caught me off-guard, it certainly wasn't the kind of thing I was expecting. From the looks on the Cures faces, we were all on the same wavelength."An interest in me?"

Pissard nodded."Correct, he thinks you could be very useful to him."

Luminous had heard enough. She snapped angrily."Chalice would never think of working for your master or the forces of Darkness!"

The white-haired man laughed."Are you so sure about that? The Dark Power he has coursing through him says otherwise. Besides," He leered in my direction. "He definitely doesn't look like a warrior the Queen of Light would want to keep around."

Hated to admit it, but he had no idea how right he was in saying that. I wasn't gonna give him the satisfaction though. I shook my head and raised the Arrow."Listen and listen good, you reject of a circus clown. I don't fight for the Light, and I certainly don't fight for the Darkness. I fight for myself, and those around me that I hold dear. I answer to nobody's authority except my own!"

Pissard's smirk seemed to dissolve pretty quickly after that little outburst."...Put away that weapon, unless you want to suffer the consequences."

I didn't back down."I think I'll take my chances." All of a sudden, Black and her partner got in front of me, staring down the weirdo."Huh?"

"You heard him," said White with a scowl."Chalice doesn't want anything to do with you or your boss. He's staying with us!"

"And if you got a problem with it," Black punched her fist into her palm."You can take it up with me and White."

The servant of darkness now wore a menacing glare on his face."You're making a very big mistake siding with them Chalice. Let me warn you, sooner or later, the power of Darkness will reign supreme over all worlds. Your help could've made things so much easier, but now,you-" An arrow whizzed by his face,making him freeze in place as I lowered my weapon.

"Spare me your incredibly long, boring and drawn-out lectures," I sighed."All it is with you guys is "darkness this" and "darkness that". I mean really, do you people even have a life? Find something constructive to do with your time that doesn't involve blowing up worlds, or causes the balance of the universe to be thrown off!"

Oh man, seeing the dumbstruck look on the dude's face when I said that was priceless. It was so satisfying too since I had for ages wanted to say something like that to these dudes, but since I'd only seen them on a screen, I couldn't. Since I was here now, why not take advantage of it?

"Yeah!" roared the tomboy."Our lives are crazy enough without you morons messing it up, so buzz off!"

Judging by the twitching in his eye, he had just about had his fill of hearing us cuss him out."Fine than...if you will not come along willingly.." He reared back.  
>"Than you leave me no choice but to force you!" He roared and charged toward us. Before the Cures could do anything, I rushed past them, ignoring their<br>shouts.

"You're gonna wish you had listened.." I hissed as I drew my last card and scanned it.**"Beat."** The hologram moved into my fist and I drew back as I neared him. He went to punch but I struck first, smashing my energized fist into his torso region.

The white-haired man gasped from the pain he must've been feeling, he gagged too. It was likely I had done some damage. He flew back and smacked off the ground like a ball bouncing before lying sprawled out like a sloth. I resumed my stance as the others ran up beside me and struck fighting stances.

"Had enough?" I asked in a challenging tone."Cause if not, there's plenty more where that came from." That was only partly true, while the power of Beat Lion was still rushing through me, it would fade eventually, and that had been my last card too. If he insisted on continuing, I'd have to resort to using just my Chalice Arrow and relying on the girls Cure powers.

"Chalice, are you alright?" asked Luminous. I turned to her and nodded.

"That was pretty reckless of you to just charge in like that," admonished White, but I could barely make out the smirk she was trying to hide."Kinda reminds  
>me of someone else I know."<p>

Black facefaulted."White, please say you're not referring to me!"

White turned her head."I didn't say I was, and I didn't say I wasn't." Her partner moaned.

But then chuckling could be heard, snapping us back to the situation at hand. We glanced over to see Pissard struggling to his feet, holding his chest and  
>having difficulty breathing. That didn't stop him from giving me a devious smirk."Impressive...to think you could deal that much damage to me with just a<br>punch...I can see why my master is so interested in you.."

Black growled and grasped her partner's hand."Leave, or we'll Marble Screw you back to the Dark Zone!" To emphasize the point, I pointed my weapon at  
>him again.<p>

Pissard was about to retort when it finally seemed to sink in what he was up against. A look of realization came over him and he dropped his arms with  
>a grunt."Fine, you've made your point. I'll let you do as you please...for now,anyway," He turned away and looked over his shoulder."But mark my words,<br>one day soon you will join us, fellow warrior of Darkness, after all," He ended with a grin."It is your fate." The guy then jumped into the sky and teleported  
>away.<p>

The sky cleared up and everything returned to normal. Black folded her arms and watched the sky."Ok, somebody mind explaining to me what that was  
>all about?"<p>

I sighed. My head was in total Mind Screw mode."I'm still trying to make sense of what the heck just happened," I turned to White."Didn't you guys  
>say you'd already beaten the Dark Zone?"<p>

White nodded with a frown."We did, so there's no way Pissard could be here.."

"Unless somebody revived him." I chimed in as I banished my weapon to wherever it was I hid it.

"Well, that's just fantastic!" exclaimed Black furiously."As if having to fight those Undead wasn't bad enough, now we got old enemies coming back  
>from who knows where and looking for revenge!"<p>

I had to have my input."Relax Black, you and the girls beat those guys once before, you can do it again. Besides," I added with a chuckle."You got  
>a Kamen Rider helping you out this time around." Man, I felt cool saying that.<p>

"That is a good point," admitted Luminous,nodding her head."You seemed to deal a good amount of damage to Pissard with that card," She lowered  
>her gaze."But...are you sure you want to take our burden on top of the one you already have?"<p>

Seeing her down, I walked over and put a hand on her shoulder."Luminous. It's my job as a Kamen Rider to fight for justice, to protect those who can't  
>defend themselves. Also, what kind of person would I be if I didn't help out in my friends' time of need?"<p>

The golden gal was silent for a few moments, perhaps thinking over what I said, before she slowly nodded."Alright, if that's what you want, then thank you."

Both the tomboy and her partner smiled happily before the former's stomach started to rumble, interrupting the moment."Whoops," Black laughed  
>nervously as the rest of us sweatdropped."Sorry, guess all that practice and fighting really worked up my appetite."<p>

"It's official, you think of nothing but your stomach-mepo!" shouted Mepple from within his pouch.

Black grunted."You're lucky I'm more hungry than angry right now.." She motioned to us."Come on,guys. Takoyaki's on me."

"Do you even have any money?" I questioned. The brunette froze in place as a giant sweatdrop appeared on her head."Uhhhhhhhh..." I sighed."Figured  
>you didn't, I'll pay for it this time. I can use a bite to eat too."<p>

We detransformed and headed off to the Takoyaki Wagon.

* * *

><p><em>Pissard reappeared in an alleyway and assumed his human form, only to collapse to one knee, moaning in pain. He had only returned from the darkness<em>  
><em>a short while ago, as such, his powers were not yet back up to par. Still, his mission had been a success to some degree, even if it had costed him a<em>  
><em>Zakenna and he'd been dealt a powerful blow.<em>

_"That Chalice...such power.." He muttered to himself. His head was buzzing over what the warrior had told him."Doesn't fight for neither Light or Darkness..if_  
><em>that's the case, then whose side is he on?"<em>

_"Pissard..." The white-haired man looked up to see a ripple appear in the air before him, a pair of glowing eyes stared out."Have you completed_  
><em>your mission?"<em>

_"Lord Black Hole.." gasped Pissard before lowering his head."Well...yes and no.." Seeing the eyes narrow, he explained."I did indeed make contact with_  
><em>the one known as Chalice, and I discovered that he is not on good terms with the Queen Of Light. As you suspected, he is a formidable warrior too. He<em>  
><em>brought my Zakenna to its knees with just a slash of his weapon."<em>

_The ripple seemed to distort as a faint chuckle could be heard on the other side."This is most excellent news, indeed. And were you able to convince_  
><em>him to join us?"<em>

_Pissard frowned."Unfortunately, that is where the good news ends. He seems to have a strong connection with the protectors of the Garden of Rainbows_  
><em>as they jumped to his defense when I approached him. Also, when I tried to convince him to join, he refused immediately. When I went to force him, he<em>  
><em>struck me with a powerful blow." He motioned to the small bruise on his chest. "Seeing I was outnumbered and weakened, I retreated."<em>

_Black Hole was not pleased with this information."One who sides with neither the Light, nor the Darkness...how unusual.." Despite this, he couldn't_  
><em>decide whether Chalice should be an ally, or an enemy. "It appears we need more knowledge of him before we can decide where he stands." The god<em>  
><em>of darkness spoke."Pissard!"<em>

_His minion shot to his feet. "I have a new mission for you. I need you to approach Chalice but this time, do NOT attack him. Find out his motivations_  
><em>and origins, and whatever else you can. Once you do, report to me and we will proceed from there."<em>

_Pissard nodded."And what of the Pretty Cure?"_

_Black Hole narrowed his eyes."..If Chalice really does have a strong connection to them, he will not allow any harm to befall them, so keep from harming_  
><em>them. Only do so if they insist on standing in your way. Otherwise, do nothing that would incur his anger."<em>

_The man scowled at the ground. He wanted to crush those girls so badly, but at the same time Chalice was an interesting figure, one that he wanted to_  
><em>know more about. He figured that, just this once, he could swallow what little pride he had and follow through with his master's command."As you<em>  
><em>wish, Black Hole-sama."<em>

_The ripple vanished into thin air. Pissard, now getting some of his strength back, walked off into the city._

_Chalice...just what are you?_

* * *

><p>Nagisa swallowed her last mouthful of octopus dumplings and shoved the empty tray away with a content sigh."Ahhh, that hits the spot."<p>

"About time too," I remarked."That's the third tray I'm after buying you." The girl had downed one whole tray in a matter of minutes and had  
>practically begged me to buy her a second round...and then a third round. She was costing me some hard-earned cash. Why did I always have to<br>be such a nice guy?

"Hey, you're the one who offered to pay," Nagisa reminded me."And I can't help it if I couldn't stop eating. They were just sooooo gooood!" She  
>stared off into space,drooling. Yep, this was the real Nagisa, or I was no Rider.<p>

"There she goes again," sighed Honoka."Off in Takoyaki Space again."

Hikari just smiled and sat beside me."Say, James. I've been meaning to ask you something for a while."

I slid away my tray of food and turned to her."Sure, what's on your mind?"

She put a finger to her chin."I was wondering...what exactly is a Kamen Rider?"

Ah, was wondering when she'd ask a question like that. At least she wasn't as ignorant or thick-headed as the Queen."That's actually a very good question. One that I can't easily answer. But they're, for the most part, warriors of justice. Real justice. Defending the weak and those who can't defend themselves. Bringing down those who are corrupt and power-mad. The Riders don't believe in some "greater good" nonsense, or "peace and order". They're here for the people, and many of them don't let the ends justify the means."

Hikari kept her eyes focused on me, entranced by my story."Wow...so there are other Kamen Riders beside yourself?"

Before I could answer, Honoka cut in."If that's the case, then how come we haven't met them yet?" From her tone, I knew she wasn't trying to be rude. She was simply curious. I couldn't really fault her. Kamen Riders were a new concept to her.

I scratched the top of my head as I wracked my brain for what to say."Well...Kamen Riders aren't exactly publicity hogs. They don't care about being famous  
>or getting big rewards for the jobs they do. Alot of the time, they do their work from the shadows. It's kinda safer that way, since it means less chance of innocents getting hurt. Also, I'm still kinda new to this whole business, so I have no way to contact them for help."<p>

Honoka seemed satisfied with that answer, but Hikari didn't appear to be. "You sure you don't mind having to seal all the Undead by yourself?"

I shrugged at her."I'm not really by myself, I got you three, and the other Cures to back us up," I glanced to the side."That is, if we can convince them to  
>help us."<p>

"They will," insisted the blue-haired girl."I may not know them too well. But from what I've seen, they're all good people, even if some of them are a little  
>strange." She added that last part with a giggle.<p>

"If you feel like we can count on them, I'll take your word for it." I said with a nod.

Hikari looked over to where her brother was drawing a picture at a table. She let out a long sigh."Hikaru..."

Noticing this, I spoke up."You're worried about him,aren't you?"

She gave a slight nod."I'm concerned he...might become the Dark King again."

Nagisa snapped out of her trance at those words and rubbed the gold gal's hair,smiling."Don't fret about it. As long as he's got you, that won't happen."

Hikari looked up at her, mouth hanging open a little."Nagisa?"

The tomboy grinned."Hey, I may not always get along with my own little brother, but we both know we'll never let anything bad to each other. It's the same for you and him too."

Hikari shut her mouth before the words sunk in and she smiled."Thanks,Nagisa."

I watched the scene with a proud smile. Nagisa may not be the smartest girl around...but she had one of the biggest hearts.

Maybe this partnership could work out after all.

* * *

><p><em>The Queen had called her two loyal advisors to her chambers, they appeared before her and bowed."My Queen, why have we been summoned?" asked<em>  
><em>Elder in a polite tone.<em>

_She spoke."I believe I have found a way to curb the anger of the one known as Chalice."_

_Wisdom breathed in relief."Thank goodness, we were worried about you for a while. You seemed pretty uneasy."_

_"Thank you for your concern," said the Queen."My plan is to meet with this Chalice. If I explain the situation to him, and my reasons for doing what I_  
><em>did, I am certain he will understand and forgive me, perhaps even join us."<em>

_Elder sputtered."Y-Y-You can't be serious!" All eyes were on him."F-Forgive me, but meeting with that..monster..is out of the question! Suicide even!_  
><em>And the idea of letting him become an emissary of light is ludicrous at best!"<em>

_Queen sighed."I understand your worries, and they are justifiable, but you must trust me. Despite what has occurred, I still believe Chalice is worthy_  
><em>of redemption. If we speak on equal terms, I can certainly make him see the truth. Please, have faith, just as you would for the Legendary Warriors."<em>

_Elder frowned, but knew what she said was true. "I still don't like it...but you are the Queen, and if that is your wish, we will respect it." He bowed along_  
><em>with Wisdom.<em>

_The Queen's aura seemed to radiate a little brighter in joy."Thank you...now go and contact them. I wish to meet with him as soon as possible."_

_Her servants turned and left the room to prepare for the arrival of their guardians..and the mysterious warrior who called himself Chalice._

* * *

><p>Just as I was about to suggest we hunt down some Undead, Porun popped out and changed into mascot form. He waved his paws excitedly."Everyone-popo! I got an incoming message from the Garden Of Light!"<p>

"Ehhh?" The three girls stared in shock at him as he jumped around.

I got up and picked up my coat."You guys can take it if you want..or ignore it, makes no difference to me. Those people maybe your benefactors, but they're  
>not mine. I want nothing to do with them."<p>

As I went to leave, Porun shouted."It's addressed to you too-popo!"

That made me stop and turn to him, perplexed."To me?" Porun nodded. I turned my head,thinking. Why would she want to contact me now of all times? She  
>hadn't bothered to before sending her warriors after me. So why the sudden change of heart? For all I knew, this could be just another dirty trick..even so, at least I could spit in her face of how much she screwed up.<p>

I walked back over and sat down."Fine,fine. Let's see what she's got to say."

Porun transformed and flipped open as Wisdom's voice came through."Hello again, Pretty Cure. It's been a while."

"It sure has, Wisdom-san." said Mipple with sparkles in her eyes. Mepple coughed and this snapped her out of it. "Oh, sorry Mepple."

Nagisa spoke first."Hey Wisdom, what's up?"

Wisdom seemed to chuckle."Actually, is Chalice there with you right now?"

Deciding to have some fun, I leaned in to the device."Yeah, I'm right here. What do ya want?"

The Prism Stones' guardian cried out in shock, making me chuckle and the girls to throw weird looks at me."Sorry, couldn't resist."

"Was..was that him?" asked Wisdom, barely containing his surprise.

Hikari leaned in to the device."Yes, that was him. Don't worry, despite what you think, he isn't a bad person."

"Yes, I see," From his tone, he didn't sound too convinced."Well than, as for why I'm contacting you, the Queen would like to speak with your new friend.  
>She wishes to explain why she did what she did to him and remove any negative impressions he has of her."<p>

"That woman has a lot of nerve trying to contact me after what she pulled." I spat back. Hikari put a hand on my shoulder gently squeezing it.

"Perhaps she does," acknowledged Wisdom."But she is trying to make amends, can you at least come and speak with her?"

I laid back in my chair and folded my arms,thinking for a bit. Wouldn't hurt to hear her out."Alright, I'll speak with her. On three conditions,"

Wisdom sighed."Very well, what are they?"

I nodded to the girls."Cures Black, White, and Shiny Luminous are allowed to come with me. Second, I come in my armor, not as a human. And  
>third, I am allowed to walk out of the meeting at any point. Is that doable?"<p>

There was whispering in the background for a few moments before Wisdom came back."That is acceptable, we'll open the rainbow bridge right now."

"Here we go again.." said Nagisa with a groan as a bright rainbow light shined from Porun and stretched to the sky, forming a giant rainbow. Watching  
>it with a glare, I stepped in after the girls and lifted up into the sky. This time wasn't as freaky as the first time I floated into the air so I took it better<br>than Nagisa who screamed loudly as we got pulled up above the world and across the stars.

"Henshin." I slashed my Change Mantis Card.**"Change."** The static energy encased me and morphed my body into the Mantis Undead. The girls transformed  
>as well, guess even they felt a little on edge as well.<p>

After flying for some time, we arrived at the Garden Of Light..and it was still as sickingly cutesy and colorful as the show had depicted it."Oh, it's so good  
>to see home again-mipo." said Mipple with a content smile.<p>

I grunted while looking away."Don't get too comfortable,you guys. We aren't gonna be staying very long." Hearing her moan made my eyes snap open at  
>how harsh I must've sounded. I quickly got down on one knee and pat her."I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way. I guess I'm just under a huge amount of stress right now."<p>

White picked up her partner and pat her gently."We understand, but try and keep calm, ok?"

I pondered what to say before nodding and walking off."I won't make a promise I can't keep, but I'll try for your sakes." Accepting my answer, the gang walked with me, carrying their partners. As we approached the large castle in the distance, a couple of helmet-wearing,spear-carrying fairies ran out and pointed at me.

"Halt! What business do you have with the Queen?"

Black and White stepped into view with the latter speaking first."It's alright, this is Chalice. We're here to meet with the Queen."

At the mention of my name, the fairies went weak in the knees and all their discipline as soldiers simply drained away. "C-C-Chalice?"

I playfully waved at them."Yo, the Queen was kinda expecting me?"

The soldiers looked at each other with scared stiff expressions before bowing."Of course," they opened the doors."Please, follow us to the meeting room."  
>They led us down the elegantly designed hallways and corridors to a large gold door with pearl decorations."The Queen is right in here, mind your manners."<p>

My Undead instincts went into high alert. This didn't look like the door to the throne room."I thought she wanted to meet me in the throne room."

The soldier explained."She insisted on a private room. Also, she said for the Pretty Cure to stay out of the meeting." Yep, knew this was too good to be true.

"Chalice doesn't go anywhere without us!" snapped Luminous furiously. The others looked just as upset as she was.

I sighed and walked up to the door."Ok, if that's how she wants to play it, I'm game." Luminous grabbed my arm but I gently removed it."Relax, I'll be fine. I'm a Kamen Rider, remember?" The girl relunctantly let go and I unlocked the door and stepped inside before closing it.

"Good luck!" called my friends before I shut it completely.

The room was fairly large and elegantly decorated with white, gold and shades of light blue crystal. The bed was massive and there were crystal chairs  
>present in the room. There was even a door open to the balcony where a woman with incredibly long shimmering gold hair stood, her skin milky white<br>and wearling a flowing white dress with gold trim. Perched on her head was a jeweled crown.

This was her, the ruler of this land, the Queen Of Light herself. She seemed to give me a radiant smile as she spoke."Greetings,Chalice. I am the Queen  
>of Light, the ruler of this realm. I am glad to finally have the chance to speak to you in person."<p>

I leaned against the door with my arms folded."Wish I could say the same."

The woman's smile faltered a little."You do not trust me." She walked over and sat in a chair."I suppose that's to be expected. We did have a misunderstanding not too long ago."

I scoffed."That's putting it lightly," I glared up at her."Without any knowledge of who I was, what I was, or even what my intentions were, you sent your own  
>soldiers, human girls, who are not even out of high school, to kill me. I didn't appreciate that."<p>

Queen sighed."Kill is too harsh a term. This was merely the option I felt was best for all parties. In a way, we were saving you from a fate worse than death.  
>While it is true you were once human, you are now bonded with the creature known as Joker, are you not?"<p>

Being reminded of such an obvious thing got my blood boiling, but I knew I had to keep a cool head. I walked over and sat in the opposite chair."You are correct. I was present when the seal on the 53 Undead was released, not by my own doing, I was simply an innocent bystander. Somehow, The sealed Joker, the most feared of all Undead, fused into my body, giving me some of its powers. Luckily, I came into possession of two other sealed Undead, the Mantis Undead, and the Human Undead. Using them, I not only was able to maintain my human form, but I also gained the power to fight and seal the other freed Undead."

"And I am to assume the form you currently use is the Mantis Undead?" asked the Queen while raising her eyebrow in suspicion.

I gave a small nod."Correct, the Mantis Undead is also referred to as Chalice, and is known in the ranks as the Category Ace Of Hearts. He is hailed as the  
>strongest of all Undead, being matched only by the other Aces and the Joker himself," I raised an arm and flexed my gauntlet-clad hand."His power is my<br>power now, and I'm gonna use it to seal every last one of them beasts before too many lives are lost."

The woman nodded as she listened intently."Your resolve is admirable, you are obviously dedicated to your mission..however.." Oh great, here it comes.  
>"If you truly wield the power of the "strongest Undead" then why bother keeping the other sealed monsters for yourself? Is the power you have now not good enough...or do you simply enjoy wielding more of it?"<p>

I growled in anger, this woman was starting to push my buttons."For your information, I NEED those sealed Undead! Chalice maybe strong but even he is not unbeatable, and I am just a ordinary human borrowing his strength. I become stronger with each beast I seal, and that power will be needed if I'm gonna end this threat before things spiral into chaos."

"How do you know they already haven't?" Queen all but snapped."You've convinced my other self to side with you, and you've even hauled my emissaries  
>into your mad quest for power." She leaned forward, a slight scowl on her face."Tell me, how long can you contain that monster inside you? Not forever,<br>even with those cards. You're a danger, and you know it."

I unfolded my arms and sat forward."I'm a danger alright, but only to the other Undead, and people who piss me off...you're quickly becoming one of the latter. So I suggest you zip it before you push me too far."

By some miracle, the scowl on her face softened and she leaned back in her chair."You'll have to exscuse me if I seem a bit abrupt. I am under a great deal of  
>anxiety. But you still have not answered my question."<p>

I grunted but complied."As long as I have the cards, I'm safe from the Joker instincts. I know I'm not completely human anymore, but that doesn't mean I've given up on life. I still have my own mind, and my own heart. If I'm stuck as that creature, then I wanna make the best of things." I sat back."Ok, can we get to the point of this meeting already? I got other things I'd like to be doing."

"Yes, I suppose you do," said the woman as she took a sip from a mug of tea that had appeared in her hand."As you wish, I called you here because I wish to offer you a place among the Legendary Warriors, become an emissary of light if you will. I think with a few tweaks you would make a mighty ally to the forces of Light.'

Ok, once upon a time, I might've jumped at a chance like this. Of course, a mix of events in real life, soul-searching, the fact I was already a Kamen Rider, a pretty badass one too, and the Queen's actions against me, made me know this wasn't a good idea. I shook my head."I'm afraid I must decline your offer."

That statement was almost enough to make her drop her mug."I beg your pardon?"

I tilted my head."You heard me. I said no. I have no intentions of working with someone who thinks their way is the only "right" way. Not only did you get school girls to fight me, you even went as far as giving them Nightmare Fuel just to convince them to go through with your plan. I maybe a bit brutal when it comes to a fight but even I know that what you did was crossing the line."

The elegant woman narrowed her eyebrows and set her tea aside."I will not lie, perhaps what I did was a tad harsh, but they were refusing to be reasonable and see the bigger picture. I did what I thought was necessary for the greater good."

I started to laugh, from the way it came out, it must've unnerved her."Oh, that is rich!" I focused on her."Be reasonable? See the bigger picture? Don't take me for a fool, woman! You were just upset that those kids didn't act like obedient servants and follow through with your crazy and stupid orders!"

Queen's scowl was back in full force."I am the ruler of this land, and the embodiment of Light itself. The needs of the many must come before the needs  
>of the few. Those girls are my warriors, they should be willing to do what is required of them to make sure the forces of Darkness do not consume everything. You are tainted with dark power, and a danger to all those around you.."<p>

She leaned in and spoke gently."But all is not lost for you. There is still time to redeem yourself. I'm offering you the chance to do so. Accept my light into  
>you and I can purge the beast inside you. If I don't, I fear the path you walk will only lead to ruin and despair," She held out her hand."Please Make the right choice."<p>

From beneath my visor, I gave her my worst glare. My image of her being a kind, benevolent goddess figure had been dampened before, but now it had melted like an ice cube in a river of molten lava. I gave a chuckle."Guess I should've expected this from the Light. You're only good and pure as long as the people beneath you do what you say and don't question things. The moment they do, you turn around and treat them like Public Enemy Number 1."

The Queen was quickly losing her patience."Chalice, I am only doing this for the sake of our survival. You are too unpredicatable to just let walk around, doing as you please! Do you want those girls to pay the price for your actions? Are you going to doom us all?"

I shot up out of my chair, knocking it over and towered over her."I will be the one who decides the road I walk. I ain't gonna side with the Darkness..and I certainly ain't siding with the Light. I'm not gonna let you or anyone else stand in the way of my goal." I turned and headed for the door."Don't ever contact me again. Next time, you won't get off so easy."

"Stop!" shouted the woman but I kept walking."I said stop!" My instincts kicked in and I swerved to avoid a beam of light she shot from her hand as it blew the door off its hinges. I couldn't believe she had just tried to shoot me when my back was turned! Rage filling me, I whipped out the Chalice Arrow and fired a shot that whizzed right by her face and blew a hole in the wall.

Shock evident on her face, I lowered my weapon."That was your one warning. Pull anymore tricks on me or my friends and I'll be back." I rushed out the doorway as she shouted."Wait, Chalice!"

I ignored her as the girls came running up to me."What happened?" Black all but shouted.

I took them by the hands."We gotta get out of here, now!" Not bothering to ask, the Cures followed me as we dashed down the hallway and out the giant  
>doors. We ran as fast as we could to stay ahead of the guards chasing us. In the distance, I saw the rainbow bridge that had brought us here. "Come on,guys! Just a little furthur!"<p>

We raced toward the bridge and boarded it just in time. The bridge carried us up into the sky and away from the Garden Of Light.

Once far enough away, I let out a sigh of relief. "That was a close one."

Black tapped me on the shoulder, wearing an inquisitve face."Ok, mind telling us what all that was about? We heard the explosion and the shouting so I'm  
>gonna guess things didn't go too well."<p>

I shook my head sadly."No, they didn't. The Queen didn't call a meeting to apologize for her actions, she just wanted to get me on her side, become one of  
>her loyal soldiers. She wanted to control me, and...take away the Joker power. When I refused to become loyal to her, she tried to shoot me in the back."<p>

"No!" exclaimed Mipple, covering her mouth in disbelief at what I was saying."The Queen isn't like that! She would never do something that cruel-mipo. It  
>must've been a mistake," She turned to her partner."White, please tell me it was a mistake!"<p>

White looked away, likely pondering what she should tell her fairy. From the look in her eyes, coming up with the right words wasn't easy."I don't know,  
>Mipple." She held her fairy up."Perhaps it was a mistake, but there's no denying she did attack our friend and she almost hurt him too. I know you're not<br>use to seeing her angry."

Mipple startled to sniffle."I'm not..she's never once said a hurtful thing to anyone, or do anything like this-mipo."

Mepple pat her on the head."Perhaps..we didn't know her as well as we thought-mepo."

I watched the mascots and felt surges of remorse course through me. This must've been quite a blow to them, finding out their benevolent ruler..wasn't as  
>benevolent as she showed herself off to be. There wasn't much I could say to comfort them, and that irked me. Even if they had been awful to me at first, this was still a heavy kick in the pants. I was still having trouble digesting it all myself.<p>

After flying for a while, we arrived back on Earth and changed into our civilian identities. "I'm gonna go check on Akane-san and Hikaru." said Hikari before  
>she went off toward the wagon.<p>

As she was doing that, Nagisa turned to me."So, you decided yet if we sh-" But she was cut off by a shrill scream that nearly shattered our eardrums.

We spun around in time to see Hikari standing in the doorway, her face pale as a ghost."Guys, come quick!" We jumped into action and raced inside the  
>wagon, only to see Hikari kneeling over the unconscious form of Akane who lied spread out with her cousin nudging her. "Akane-san? Akane-san!"<p>

The woman's eyelids shuddered and she opened her eyes. "H-Hikari?" She sat up and looked around."What happened? Why am I sitting on the floor?"

Hikari blinked in surprise."You don't remember?"

I frowned and went over beside her, my Undead instincts were going on high alert."Akane..what's the last thing you can recall?"

She looked up at me with a perplexed face before she scratched her chin."Um...I recall just working at the counter.."

* * *

><p><em>Akane had been humming away while working at the counter. Hikaru was in the back, reading his story book. The sun was setting and it looked like the day would end without anything going wrong. That is, until a masculine voice spoke."Excuse me? Can I have a moment of your time?"<em>

_The woman smiled."But of course, what can I.." She looked up, only to lose that smile."Get...you.."_

_Standing before her was a tall man in his late 30's to early 40's. He wore all black. Black pants, shoes, black shirt, black gloves and a black overcoat. His skin was fair and he had short black hair with a pair of black sunglasses sitting over his eyes. The man smirked, and it put her on edge. He walked around_  
><em>and opened the door and stepped aboard.<em>

_Akane was almost instantly in his face."H-Hey! If you want to buy something, go to the window!" She was trying to put up a brave front, but at the same time she was sweating up a storm. There was just something totally off about this guy. When the man didn't move, she got mad."Oy, can't you hear me? I'm talking to you!"_

_The man looked up at her, still wearing that smirk."Yes, I can hear you just fine." He put a hand on her chest."Now please step aside." Giving one gentle push, he sent the woman toppling backwards onto her rear and climbed aboard._

_"Akane?" Hikaru came running out and saw her on the floor. He gasped."Akane!"_

_The brown-haired girl looked over and yelled."Hikaru! Stay back! This man is dangerous!"_

_"Be quiet." hissed the older man as he rose his hand and she felt herself becoming short of breath, after a few moments, he lowered his hand and the girl fell onto her side, holding her throat and trying hard to regain proper breathing._

_Hikaru couldn't stand to see this. He roared."Leave her alone, you big bully!"_

_The overcoat-wearing man merely smiled in a devious manner."Don't worry little boy, I have no intentions of killing her..not today at least." He walked over as the blond-haired child backed up against the wall. The man kneeled down and waved his hand over him."Sleep." The boy's eyes got drowsy and he fell onto the man's arm out like a light._

_Akane watched in disbelief, finally, she snapped."You monster! Get your hands off that boy!"_

_The stranger simply grinned evilly at her and she felt goosebumps go up her spine."Can't do that, I need this little one for my plan to work," Slinging the child over his shoulder, he trekked over and kneeled next to the woman. "But maybe you can be of use to me too," He reached into his pocket and withdrew a folded piece of paper before placing it on the ground next to her. "Give this to a man named Chalice, and don't try to follow me, don't contact the police either or this boy will pay the price. I'll know if you do."_

_He stood up and headed for the door. Akane called out."Wait! Why are you doing this?"_

_The man turned and for a moment, it looked like his smirk had softened, just a little."Because...it is my nature." With that, he took off out the door._

_Akane, both from lack of breath, and the shock of these events, lost consciousness,muttering only one word."Hikaru..."_

* * *

><p>We all stood around Akane as she sat in a chair while wrapping up her story. "After that, everything went black and..well, you guys know the rest." She buried her face in her hands as she started to sob.<p>

"That heartless monster..." Nagisa snarled before smashing her fist against the wall. "If only we had been here..."

White took her hand gently and rubbed it."Don't blame yourself,Nagisa...we couldn't have known something like this would happen."

Hikari sat next to her cousin, gently stroking her back, trying to be strong but one could tell this was a hard thing to accept. Her brother was her counterpart, the Yin to her Yang. Not only that, she loved him dearly. I knew I had to get him back no matter the cost. I walked over to the note lying on the floor and scooped it up. "Maybe this will give us a clue."

I unfolded the paper and proceeded to read. Here's what it said:

_Hello Chalice,_

_Long time no see. How long has it been exactly? In case your long slumber has made you dull in the head, it's been over 10 000 years. But than again, being Undead_  
><em>makes the flow of time almost irrelevant. I am certain you are aware of what being unsealed means. Yes, it means it is time for another Battle Royale. And this time<em>  
><em>I intend to be the victor. To make sure of this, I have taken some...precautions, if you will. I know you are the strongest of us all, so removing you first will make the<em>  
><em>rest of this tournament that much easier.<em>

_Now, I offer you a choice. In an abandoned warehouse on the edge of town, I have hidden a little boy with a bomb. The bomb is armed and set to go off in less than_  
><em>an hour. If you reach him before the timer ends, you can save him. However, I knows you can't get enough of playing the hero, so I will be waiting on the top of the<em>  
><em>museum building if you wish to come and face me. Be warned, if you choose not to show, I will slaughter every human locked inside the structure.<em>

_That is your decision. Sacrifice the boy to stop me, or let dozens of humans suffer just to save one measly child. The choice is yours, and the clock is ticking. I'll_  
><em>be waiting.<em>

_Signed, The Jack Of Diamonds_

After I finished reading, I gnarled my teeth in rage. This was just like him. The Peacock Undead's "nature" involved being a manipulative bastard, and he was certainly showing it. In the show, he had kidnapped Kenzaki and his friends to use them as part of his plot to construct the Leangle system, then he had brainwashed Garren into helping him, even forcing him to fight Blade at one point, as if that weren't enough, he went ahead and killed Tachibana's girlfriend for interfering.

However, this was the last straw for the man, and he broke free of the brainwashing and curbstomped the jerk then sealed him.

His victory had come at a high price though, and he even stopped being a Rider for several episodes. I don't think he ever totally forgave himself for letting fear rule his actions, and letting it take someone important from him.

But I was not Tachibana, and I was not gonna let fear control me. I turned and showed the girls the note. Seeing their faces go from worried to just plain infuriated was more than a little disturbing. "How dare he use my own brother as part of his twisted scheme.." said Hikari with a rather grim look in her eyes. "James, you go and stop him, we'll go and rescue my brother."

"Once he's safe, we'll come to the museum and help you fight." said Honoka in a no-nonsense tone of voice.

I nodded."That's a good plan, you guys go save Hikaru, I'll hold off the Peacock Undead so he doesn't kill any innocent people." I walked over to the sobbing woman and went down to her level. "Akane-san, it's gonna be alright. We're gonna get help, and find Hikaru for you."

The woman hearing this, stopped her sobbing and looked up at me with puffy red eyes."You? But..he said.."

I put up my hand to stop her."I know what he said, but he didn't say anything about other people not calling the police,right?" Akane frowned at that but nodded."Wait right here, we'll be back as soon as we can." _If we don't die._ I thought to myself. I quickly got rid of that thought, I had to stop him. Me and the girls nodded to each other before running outside.

I climbed on my bike and slipped on the helmet. Before I kick-started the engine, Hikari called out."James!" She ran over and took hold of my hand."Be careful,ok?" Looking her in the eye, I saw the sadness and the desperation she must've been experiencing right now. "If this man really is one of the Royal Class Undead, then he'll be much more dangerous than the others we fought. Promise me you'll come back?"

Seeing the look in her eyes was more than enough for me to agree."Of course," I placed my hand on top of hers."You be careful too."

The golden girl nodded before she reached behind her head and undid her hairband, letting her braid come undone. I watched as she placed it in my hand and closed it tightly."Here, take it for good luck."

Staring in surprise at this, it dawned on me just how much she trusted me. Hikari had NEVER let her hair down even once in the show, not to my knowledge at least. So seeing her actually do this was a real eye-opener. I looked to her and nodded."Thank you, once this is over, I'll make sure to give it back." She nodded and went over to her friends.

I kick-started the engine for real."Best of luck, you guys." They nodded and pulled out their devices as I raced off down the street.

Yet still, I managed to hear the signature cries.

"Dual Aurora Wave!"

"Luminous, Shining Stream!"

Trusting them to do their side of the mission, I roared off down the road toward my rendezvous with the Jack Of Diamonds.

Here's hoping I came out of it alive.

* * *

><p><em>Pissard gnarled his teeth as he walked about the city streets. "Where are you,Chalice? Why don't you show yourself already?" He had spent the last couple hours combing<em>  
><em>this city from top to bottom and yet he still couldn't find any traces of him. He didn't want to use another Zakenna either. That would only serve to drive him farther away<em>  
><em>from Black Hole-sama.<em>

_"He says he is not working with the Queen, yet he fights alongside those girls..it just doesn't make any sense!" He stopped and leaned against a brick wall,sighing._  
><em>"What do I do? I've scowered this blasted town for hours and I couldn't find him.." He looked up to the sky."If I don't find him soon, Black Hole is gonna have my<em>  
><em>head." Just as he was about to give up, he saw a strange sight on the rooftops."What the?" He squinted his eyes and spotted a rather jolting sight.<em>

_Vaulting across the rooftops was Cure Black and Cure White along with that Shiny Luminous girl. Judging by the way they were moving, they were on a mission._

_The warrior of the Dark Zone slanted his eyebrows and rubbed his chin in thought."Hmm, maybe." He shedded his human skin and assumed his true form before_  
><em>leaping up on the rooftop behind them. "And just where do you think you three are going?"<em>

_Black and the others skidded to a stop, and resisted the urge to do a simultaneous groan. The tomboy turned and scowled at the old enemy."Of all the times you_  
><em>could've picked to show up, you chose right now?"<em>

_Pissard's eyes widened at the anger she was giving off."My, my, somebody's in a bad mood this evening."_

_White walked past her partner and up to the white-haired man."Pissard, if you want to fight, you're gonna have to wait. We're in the middle of doing something very_  
><em>important for Luminous."<em>

_The villain folded his arms with a huff."And what might that be?"_

_"We don't need to explain ourselves to you," said Black with a heavy snarl."You and the rest of the Dark Zone have done nothing but get in the way of us living our_  
><em>lives, and you've endangered the lives of the ones we love too many times to count! Why should we tell you anything?"<em>

_Pissard let out a big sigh. "This is difficult for me to admit...but I am not here to fight you, not right now. Like you, I have more important things to take care of first."_

_Luminous along with the others were totally not expecting this. The way their jaws dropped and eyes shot open was evidence of that."You're not going to fight us?"_

_He shook his head."Not today, no. My master simply seeks information on the one known as Chalice. Also, he told me specifically not to harm you since he_  
><em>hopes that will earn his good graces."<em>

_The Cures all looked at each other with suspicion etched on the face. "What do you guys think?" asked Black._

_White was the one to answer."Well, he did give me back Mipple before our last battle with him, so we could fight him fairly."_

_Pissard scratched his head in embarassment."Yeaahh...I still have no idea what possessed me to do that." He stopped scratching."Tell you what, I help you find_  
><em>whatever it is you're looking for. In return, you give me some info about your new friend. Sound fair?"<em>

_Black frowned and turned to Luminous."What do you think, Luminous? This is your show."_

_The golden girl bowed her head and closed her eyes."Forgive me,Chalice.." She opened her eyes."Alright, it's a deal." For a moment, a twinge of guilt and betrayel_  
><em>shot through her.<em>

_Pissard sighed and unfolded his arms."That's a weight off my shoulders, ok, what you girls looking for?"_

_"It's not what, it's who," corrected Luminous."We're looking for my brother, Hikaru. He's a bit short with fair skin, blonde hair and he's wearing a white shirt with_  
><em>overalls. He also has blue eyes." She then added."You might also know him as the Dark King."<em>

_That made him falter in surprise, eyes ready to pop."T-The D-D-Dark King? In the body of a child?" He shook his head at the absurdity."I...will try to reach out to him."_  
><em>He closed his eyes for a moment then felt a pull. They shot open and he turned around."Follow me, quickly!" Pissard led the way with the girls in hot pursuit.<em>

_As they ran, Shiny Luminous thought to herself. Hikaru...please be safe..._

* * *

><p>I arrived at the museum and climbed off the bike. It was an impressive structure. Tall, sturdy, carved in grey and white marble with shiny oak doors with the golden knobs melted partially by some powerful source of heat. I could hear screaming, yelling and even some crying coming from inside. I raced toward the doors, ready to burst in and get those people out when a sharp voice stopped me in my tracks.<p>

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Looking up, I spotted the man responsible for this mess standing up there on the roof, Isaka, otherwise known as the Jack Of Diamonds. "The moment you break down those doors, you forfeit their lives."

Despite the drops of sweat rolling down my cheek, I snapped."I came just as you wanted! Now let those poor people go!"

"So you did,"said Isaka with a nod as he jumped off the roof and hovered down until he landed on the steps in front of me. It took a lot of willpower not to just freak out. The Peacock Undead wasn't a member of the Royal Class for nothing.

Not only was he a master manipulator, he was very strong and possessed some deadly abilities that made him a force to be reckoned with. The first couple times the Riders fought him, he basically kicked their asses. I knew I couldn't afford to screw around, not with so much on the line.

The man, after staring at me for a bit, spoke."So, you chose to sacrifice the child's life to stop me from killing these humans," He nodded to the building behind him. A small smirk appeared on his lips."How very much like a hero, sacrificing the few to save the many."

I growled at him."Nobody's life is being sacrificed today, you wanna know why?" I grinned and pointed a finger at him."Because the joke's on you! As we speak, my friends are already on the way to rescue that child. All I have to do is keep you from doing anything until they finish and your whole plan is a total flop!" I crossed my arms and wore a smug smile, knowing I'd managed to pull one over on him.

Or so I thought. Isaka seemed a little taken back by what I said at first, only to turn around and give me a really evil grin."I had my suspicions you were in with those girls, and now you've confirmed them," I lowered my arms as a creepy feeling went over my skin. The man pulled out a bundle wrapped in a black blanket."I figured you might try a tactic like this, so I left your friends a little present. Oh, and here,"

He tossed the bundle toward me and I caught it with ease."I no longer have any use for the brat."

For a second, I didn't get it, but then it hit me like a ton of bricks."No..." I pulled the blanket off and there was Hikaru, unconscious, but still breathing."Hikaru.." I looked up as the goosebumps got even worse."The girls are walking right into a trap."

I felt really dumb at that moment, I thought we had managed to get the better of him, but instead, it looked like things were happening the opposite way.

Isaka's smirk only grew."Correct, and there's nothing you can do for them. You try to leave here, and I will burn this building to the ground."

The sad part was that I knew he was correct. The girls would never forgive me if I abandoned the plan to go help them, and I would never be able to live with myself if I allowed all those innocent folk to perish at this monster's hands, or talons.

I was utterly, and completely, helpless, and that angered me to no end.

* * *

><p><em>The girls arrived at what appeared to be a run-down warehouse. It looked like it hadn't been used in ages. The structure looked dilapidated, the paint was starting to peel, most of the windows appeared to be covered in dust and grime or just smashed in altogether. Pissard landed beside them and stared at the building."This is the place."<em>

_Black still was suspicious of his intentions and she made them known."How do we know we can trust you? For all we know, you could be leading us into a trap."_

_He scoffed at the girl."You don't, but you wish to save the Dark King,do you not?" Nods all around."Then we have the same goal." He threw a quick glance at_  
><em>Luminous."Remember your part of the deal?"<em>

_She nodded."Yes, now let's not waste anymore time." She wanted to save Hikaru as quickly as possible and get to Chalice's side to help him fight._

_They stepped inside through a door hanging off its hinges and into the dimness of the building. A soft moaning noise could be heard and Luminous immediately perked up at the sound."Hikaru!" She ran on. "Hang on, we're coming!" The girls and Pissard ran beside her, they galloped farther into the depths of the construct, the moaning getting louder and louder as they proceeded._

_At last, they saw something huddled in the corner, wrapped in a sheet of cloth. The group approached with caution, Luminous leading them. As she neared, she spoke in a gentle tone."It's alright, Hikaru. Your sister's here now. We're going home now, back to Akane-san."_

_Black had to cut in though."Um...didn't the letter say there was suppose to be a bomb?" Everybody stopped and froze at that announcement. They all started looking every which way for the device, but didn't find anything._

_White sighed in relief."I guess he was bluffing about there being a bomb."_

_Everyone let out the breath they'd been holding in and the golden girl walked over to the figure."Come on, Hikaru. Let's go." But just as she went to remove the blanket, the figure shuddered and stood up, revealing itself to be much taller than her little brother. All those present took a step back."H-Hikaru?"_

_White was first to get it."Luminous! That's not Hikaru!" Before the queen's life could respond, the figure lashed out and hit her in the chest with a punch,sending her flying back into White's arms._

_Shock turned to disbelief when the figure reached up and removed the sheet, exposing its true self. Pissard took a step back at the sight before him, he stammered. "W-What in the name of the Dark King is that creature?"_

_The creature before them had a humanoid shape and was covered in a mix of purple and orange skin with a gold chest. Rows of white feathers lied alongs its arms and shoulders. Its head was shaped like a woodpeckers with a black mask covering it. A purple plumage stuck out of the top of its head. Its entire left arm looked like a mix between a natural arm and a bird's wing. It wore a pair of black leather pants with gold kneecaps and studded boots with the talons sticking out. Gold bands were spread along the right arm. It wore a strange belt too. Although none of them knew it, this was the Category 4 Of Diamonds, Rapid Pecker Undead._

_The beast reared back and screeched at them. "It's an Undead!" exclaimed Black as she got in a fighting pose. "We've been set up!"_

_Pissard turned to the Cure with a bewildered face."Undead? Explain yourself!"_

_"No time, just fight!" White ordered as the monster went on the attack. It pulled back its wing and swung it forward, unleashing a hail of feathers on them. The group tumble-rolled to the side just barely avoiding being skewered by them as they slammed into the wall with enough force to send numerous cracks through it. _

_Even the Dark King's former servant was surprised by this."How did.." He never had a chance to finish as the creature punched him in the side of the head, sending the man flying and smashing through the cracked wall._

_"Hey!" the Undead turned in time to see Black leaping into the air and coming down with a drop kick. However, the beast tilted its head, making her boot miss its intended target. Black gasped in surprise and her foe grabbed her ankle and lifted her up over its shoulder and slamming the girl down into the floor hard._

_"Black!" cried White as she jumped in and booted it in the side of the head,forcing it to let go and stumble back from her. She quickly ran to her partner's side. "Are you alright?"_

_The tomboy nodded and rubbed her shoulder."I'm fine, but that bird-brain is going down!" She jumped to her feet and ran toward the Undead, screaming. It rose its wing to cover its body as Black let fly a round of rapid-fast jabs. Despite the force behind her blows, the monster refused to drop its guard or show any signs of getting tired._

_Finally, it grunted and swatted the girl away with a swing of its wing. Black did an aerial recovery and landed on two feet before charging back in with White by her side. The Pecker Undead thrusted both arms forward and a barrage of sharp feathers shot forth at the ground in front of them, causing an explosion that knocked bothgirls into the air, crying out in pain._

_ It followed this by jumping into the air and smacking them both with one arm each. The force sending them crashing into opposite sides of the room._

_The beast floated down to the ground and turned its eyes on Luminous, only to receive a ball of dark energy to the chest, the blast made it take a few steps back as Pissard stepped out of the hole in the wall, wearing an upset face."Sorry, but me and those girls have a deal, and I can't let you kill them until I get what I need."_

_The bird growled and ran toward him while thrusting a punch. Pissard ducked and rolled out of the way just as its fist took out another chunk of the wall. Once more, he was amazed and a little frightened by the power this creature wielded. However, it took advantage of his state to whirl around with a roundhouse kick to his midsection that made him groan in pain before being lifted into the air and chucked to a corner of the room._

_"Hey!" It turned in time to raise its wing arm to block the double punch from Black and White. The strength behind the attack was enough to make it skid back across the floor several feet but it held its ground. The two jumped back as the bird screeched and lunged forward. The two twirled out of the way and grabbed hold of its wrists before jumping into the air and doing a forward somersault before slamming the Undead into the ground._

_Luminous stood on the sidelines, waiting for her chance to jump in and do her part. For now, she was simply analyzing the situation. She knew that if there was an Undead here then Hikaru had to be with the Jack Of Diamonds, which meant Chalice would be in even more trouble now._

_ It dawned on her that this had been the enemy's plan from the start. To split them up, to keep one from helping the other. The Jack must've suspected how close they were and set this trap to keep them apart._

_What's worse, even if they managed to defeat this Undead, they didn't have Chalice and his Blanks to seal it in. The only thing they could hope for was to knock out the beast and escape before it recovered._

_"Chalice...please hang in there.." She prayed._

* * *

><p>Placing Hikaru on the ground, I whispered."Hikaru, it's me, James," His eyes opened and he shot up and began looking around. "James? W-Where's my sister?"<p>

I put my hands on his shoulders to calm him down."Relax, you'll see her soon, but right now, I need you to go hide," I spared a glance at Isaka as he slowly walked toward us."From him."

The blond-haired boy's eyes shot open and he clenched his fist. "Make him pay for hurting Akane-san." I nodded and he ran off to find a place to hide.

I stood up and turned to the man as a red light appeared on my waist and morphed into the Chalice Rouzer. I swear my anger was just boiling and ready to explode out. This guy was going down hard."You took an innocent child as a hostage, attacked his caretaker, made his sister worried sick, and sent my friends into a trap, you are not walking away from this, Isaka!"

The monster's grin only grew."If you really think you have the power to seal me," A rainbow-colored aura appeared around him."Than come and try."

I withdrew the Change Mantis Card as his aura intensified and his features started to blur."Henshin." I slashed.**"Change."** The black static spread over me as a new shape started to appear from where the man stood. My own form altered itself into my other self. Both of us finished transforming at the same time. I stood in my Rider form, but that man in front of me...was a walking nightmare now.

His form was that of a human but with blue avian features and the characteristics of a peacock. His entire body was covered in blue feathers and over it he wore a suit of black spiky body armor. On his shoulders were a pair of massive ridged shoulderpads with blue feather edges. His hands were actually the talons of a bird. The remnants of his long coat hung down his rear and to the ground. The creature wore studded leather pants with large black leather boots. Blue spikes on his kneecaps and talons sticking out the toe part of his boots. His body was powerfully built and his face was shaped like a peacock's with blue feathers around it.

Over his face he wore a black mask and his piercing blue eyes stared out at me. Around his waist, he wore the built that signified him as an Undead.

This...was Isaka's true form, and it scared the living daylights out of me. But then I remembered what I was here to do and I recomposed myself. Clenching my fist, the Chalice Arrow appeared to me. Isaka lifted his hand and a new distortion appeared around it, forming into a grey broadsword that had a hollow circle right above the handle, for some reason.

The moon came out from behind the clouds and shined its light down on us. It was time to square off.

(Play Kamen Rider Black: Long Long Ago 20th Century)

We spent several moments just staring each other down as one sized up the other. I kept a steady hand on my blade and after what seemed like forever I roared and raced toward him, the guy didn't bother to move. Must've felt confident in his ability. As I neared, I pulled back my weapon and swung. The Jack simply lifted his sword with one hand and our two weapons met with a clang.

Seeing that he wasn't faltering, I put more force into my shove yet he still refused to budge. Bringing my boot up, I kicked off his chest and took a few steps back while he continued to just stand there. I rose my bow and let loose several shots toward Isaka. He didn't even pause, just swung his blade and knocked each arrow off course, causing them to explode to the sides of him, sending chunks of rock flying although he didn't seem to notice.

The Jack of Diamonds twirled his weapon and placed it on his shoulder."What's wrong,Chalice? I thought you said you were going to seal me." I swear, underneath that mask he was wearing a smug little smirk, and it only served to furthur piss me off.

"Shut up!" I snapped before charging him again while pulling back the bow. He simply rose his blade and as I ran past, I slashed him, as he slashed me at the same time. I skidded to a stop a few feet from him and turned to see what damage I'd done...Not a scratch on him, me on the other hand..

"Gahh..." I grunted as a wound opened up on the side of my ribcage, drizzles of green blood oozed out. Even with the Mantis Undead's regenerative abilities, it still didn't stop the cut from hurting.

Even so, I couldn't let that stop me. There were lives at stake here. Doing my best to ignore the pain in my side, I launched myself at him again, and once more our blades clanged and grinded against one another. I shoved harder than before but he simply huffed and sent me flying back with one push on his blade. Arms flailing, I was wide open to an diagonal slash that sent sparks flying and jolts of anguish through me.

The manipulator followed this with an upward slash, powerful enough to send me spiraling into the air and landing with a thump on the pavement. Did it hurt? You be the judge.

I looked up to see the Peacock Undead raising his hand as a bright flame burst from it. I rolled out of the way as it destroyed the spot where I'd landed. The blast produced an after-effect in the form of a mini-shockwave that lifted me off the ground and hurled me several feet like a bean bag. My body impacted the ground with enough force to crack it. My armor protected me from the worst of it although I still felt the surge of pain.

Getting up on my knees first, I wobbled until I righted myself. Seeing that I wasn't done, Isaka's body glowed and a bunch of blue razor-sharp feathers rose up from his shoulders. They pointed toward me and flew at high speeds. In a flash, I raised up my bow and took a hop backward while firing off laser bolts. Most of the feathers exploded in mid-air but one or two manage to stick into my shoulder.

Without flinching, I reached up and tore them out before tossing them aside. The Jack advanced on me and rose his sword before swinging it down, I rose the bow and stopped his weapon from splitting me in two. However, the strength in his sword arm was enough to make my knees go weak and I felt one of them give out beneath me. At the sight of this, the monster chuckled before bringing his knee up and making it collide with my face.

Ever hear the expression, "seeing stars"? Cause that's certainly what I was seeing as I felt myself fall onto my back. Despite my brief dizziness, I saw my foe with his sword ready to thrust. I twisted my head out of the way, the sword sending cracks where it once had been. Lifting my weapon, I fired into his exposed chest, causing showers of sparks to fly every which way.

With him briefly stunned, I rolled away and got to my feet once more. More shots flew from the Arrow, impacting against his torso and shoulders. I leaped into the air and came down with a drop kick that connected with his chest even though it did nothing. He merely swung at my chest with his clawed hand and I found myself rolling away from him before I came to a stop and could get up.

As the peacock walked toward me, he sighed."Pathetic, should've known something was off about you. Your aura's all wrong, besides, the real Chalice wouldn't be so concerned about what happens to humans."

I shrugged and let out a deep breath before getting in a fighting stance."Things changed."

However, Isaka seemed amused by that statement."Oh really? The belt you have on isn't the same one he wore..infact, it looks like the Joker's belt. Your aura seems to be mixed with a human's though," He continued to walk toward me as he spoke."A weak human like you does not deserve to wield the power of the Legendary Undead."

I shook my head at him."Well, if that's the case, then I'll just have to prove I deserve it.." Detaching my Rouzer, I slotted it into its space in the Arrow.".By beating you!"

Opening my holster, I reached in and pulled out the Bullet Armadillo card then scanned it.**"Bullet."** The hologram moved into my weapon and I drew it back. A larger version of my energy arrow erupted forth and headed for its intended target.

The power of the Category 2 Of Diamonds involved enhancing the efficiency of long-range weapons, which basically meant my shots would pack more of a punch now. I just hoped there was enough juice in it now to deal some damage to the Jack of Diamonds.

Isaka narrowed his eyes and held his blade up in front of him, as if he were using it as a shield. The arrow impacted against his weapon and the force behind it was enough to make him take a step back...although that was all the results I got because next thing I knew, he growled and shoved roughly on his sword, splitting right down through the arrow and sending bursts of energy in all directions.

Explosions erupted all around him and I had to shield my visor to keep out the smoke from my vision. "He cut..right through it.." I was in shock, the Jack of Diamonds was powerful in the show, but seeing his strength in person was a whole other story. Hard to believe not even a couple weeks ago he was nothing more than a piece of merchandise.

When I finally lowered my arm, I stared up in disbelief as Isaka stood in my face, even though his mask didn't show it, I knew he was grinning."Nice to see my cohort's power is being put to good use."

I took a step back."Cohort? So..." I pointed a finger at him."YOU sent the Category 2 of Diamonds after my friends?"

Isaka let out a dark chuckle."Indeed I did, and the Category 2 of Spades, they were both my doing," He stepped forward as he talked."I knew I could never get close to you as long as you were in contact with those girls. It didn't matter to me which of my fellow Undead did them in, as long as they were removed from the picture."

He slashed me and I felt myself fall to one knee again. I snarled."You monster...you endangered the lives of my friends..just to get to me..."

The Jack placed his sword on his shoulder and sighed."Boy, I am simply following the law of my existance, the law put in place by our creator. The Undead must fight until only one remains, that is our reason for existing," He glared down at me."I don't know what you think you're accomplishing by sealing us, but it will not work. A mere human like you cannot defy the Master's will."

I clenched my fist tightly, seething in anger."Your creator is wrong...this whole blasted tournament is a sick game, and I refuse to let you, the Undead, or even your damn God have your own way!" I grabbed hold of his chest and pulled myself up so fast, my cranium smashed against his face at full force.

The douche stumbled back, holding his face and growling in pain at my unexpected move. I fumbled for a moment but righted myself."Now it's payback time.." I pulled out the Slash Lizard card and scanned it.**"Slash."** With power pulsing through the Chalice Arrow, I leaped into the air, the weapon raised over my head, aiming to split this guy right down the middle and put an end to this fight.

Too bad Lady Luck wasn't on my side today.

Despite his disorientation, Isaka managed to lift his sword up in time to block it. The collision sent ripples of power that broke up the ground around us but he refused to fall. From behind his mask, he gave me a glare that sent shivers up my spine."You are going to regret that,boy." He pulled his hand back as a ball of flame appeared in it.

I felt myself go a little pale."Oh cr-" The fire exploded against my chest and for a few moments, I lost sight of everything...

When I came to, I found myself face down on the ground, parts of my body felt numb. I turned over,groaning, and looked up to see the Royal Class Undead standing over me with his sword poised to strike."I must admit boy, even if you're not Chalice, for a human, you put up a better fight than I expected. However, this is the end of the line for you." He got ready to attack."Farewell."

(End Song)

I tried to move my arm so I could grab hold of one of my cards. However, my entire right arm had lost all feeling and was as stiff as concrete. I could only look up as my foe rose his blade to deal what I felt would be the finishing blow._ I can't let it end like this! I just can't!_ I thought to myself._ I got too much to do, there's still so much I wanna do with my life!_

_There's no way...I can fail..I can't..._

The Peacock Undead went to swing his sword and I shut my eyes, preparing for the end...but it never came.

When I didn't feel the blade cleave into me, I risked opening an eye and immediately went into shock. Isaka's weapon had been stopped by someone grabbing hold of his wrist. The hand holding him back was feathery and the figure it was attached to looked like a humanoid eagle covered in a suit of black studded body armor with brown along the sides and talons sticking out of his boots. His shoulder pads were shaped like feathers with the bony membrane of wings sticking out of his back. Over his forearms he wore a large pair of bladed arm guards. His face was shaped like an eagle's with a dark mask covering much of it. Around his waist, he wore the buckle that identified him as an Undead.

Yes people, I had just been saved by the most unlikely person, the Category Jack Of Spades, Eagle Undead.

Isaka too appeared to be shocked by this turn of events. He angrily spoke out."What do you think you're doing?"

The Eagle Undead shot back."Touch Chalice not!" He shoved him away and slashed him across the chest, sending bursts of sparks flying before kicking the other Undead back and pulled out a couple of feathery shurikens which he threw at Isaka, making them explode off his shoulders and midsection.

The Peacock reared back and shot some of his feathers out at him, but Eagle took to the skies and evaded them before flying down and crashing against his fellow avian sibling. The two rolled around on the ground for a bit before Isaka kicked him off and scrambled away.

The Eagle Undead took up a defensive position in front of me while Isaka looked between us, perhaps wondering what he should do. At last, he sighed."It appears my plan has failed," He pointed his blade at me."Be grateful, Chalice. You get to live for another day, but make no mistake, we will meet again one day, and when we do, I will cut you to pieces!" He jumped into the air and flew off.

After watching him fly out of sight, the Eagle let out a breath he'd been holding in and walked over to me."Are you alright, Chalice?"

I struggled up so I could sit against the wall, breathing heavily."Yeah...thanks for coming when you did."

Eagle Undead simply chuckled and leaned against the wall."No need to thank me, I am simply fulfilling the promise we made 10 000 years ago. Until it is, I cannot allow you to fall," He turned to me with a curious expression."You are just after being unsealed though, so why did you think you could challenge the Jack Of Diamonds without your powers at their peak?"

Now it was my turn to chuckle, despite how painful it was. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

My savior tilted his head awkwardly."Try me."

I averted my gaze and called out."Ok, Hikaru! The coast is clear!" Wondering what I was talking about, the Eagle Undead looked over to where Hikaru crawled out from behind a large bush and ran over to us.

"Are you ok,Chalice?" he asked, worry written all over his face as he looked at my wounds.

I sighed."Don't worry about me, I'll live, you're not hurt are you?" Our fight had gotten pretty violent, with scorch marks and holes in the pavement scattered all over the place.

He shook his head."No...I'm fine."

The Jack of Spades let out a big laugh."You went through all this trouble for him, Chalice? You never struck me as the type to be concerned about the humans."

I used the wall as leverage to get to my feet, albeit wobbly,"I guess you can say I've...grown fond of them." Remembering the people trapped inside, I waltzed over and sliced off the hinges holding the door up and walked back to him. "Now than, I think we-"

Never got to finish that line cause a bright set of headlights flashed in our faces and a female voice cried out."Hikaru!"

I watched as Akane leaped out of the driver's seat and ran up to her cousin while lifting him up and giving him a bunch of hugs and kisses. Jack watched the scene with a bit of perplexion before turning to me. "I must go now, we will speak more another time," He flapped his wings and took off into the air."Remember the promise,Chalice!" He called before flying away.

Ok, now with the weirdness of that over with, I hobbled over to where the duo were, Akane putting a protective arm around the child. Hikaru though, patted her on the hand."It's ok, Akane-san, he saved me." Surprise and disbelief swirled around on her face as she looked up to me. I simply nodded to her as she mouthed a quiet "thank you".

I smiled behind my mask as Hikaru nodded to me. However, someone's shoe hit me in the side of the head followed by bits of garbage."Monster! Freak! We don't want you here!" People were standing around, pelting me with trash even though I had just saved all their lives. Hearing the words was enough to remind me I wasn't wanted here.

With a sad sigh, I walked away. I needed to find the girls and quick, I felt like I was about to fall down and go to sleep.

Just needed to hang on...needed to make sure the girls were ok..

* * *

><p><em>The Cures and Pissard stood before the Pecker Undead, breathing in and out heavily with several scratches on their bodies. It had been a pretty tough fight, fists and feet had been flying all over the place and much of the room was a wreck. They were all getting pooped out gradually but they had slowly managed to wear down the bird. Black and White were just about to summon the Sparkle Bracelets when their foe simply froze in place.<em>

_"Huh?" Pissard wondered."Why did it suddenly stop?"_

_Unknown to them, the Jack Of Diamonds was communicating telepathically with its minion."Our plan is a failure, we must retreat for now."_

_Nodding to the voice without a body, the Pecker Undead turned and leaped out a shattered window before flying off into the night."Hey!" roared Black as she went to the window and looked out but by then, the bird was long gone. "Darn it!" The tomboy smashed her fist on the window sill and fumed._

_Pissard blinked at this and scratched his head."I think I speak on behalf of the whole Dark Zone when I ask...What the HECK was that all about?"_

_Luminous turned to him with a stern face."First, we find Chalice, then we'll tell you what you want to know." She leaped out the window with the others and landed on the pavement safely before heading off with the gang close behind, praying that both her friend and brother were ok._

_Not long after leaving the building, they spotted a figure stumbling toward them from out of the darkness. His armor was scorched on the chest, slash marks and claw scratches covered his torso and shoulders and he had a wound open on the side, green life fluids oozing out. He walked with a small limp in his leg. The scene was enough to make the group gasp in surprise and horror._

_"Chalice!" Shiny Luminous rushed over beside her friend and helped steady him."Are you ok..no wait, that's a stupid question, of course you're not..can you hear me?"_

_The armored figure turned his head and gave a small nod."Yeah...and your brother's safe..but the Jack Of Diamonds got away.."_

_A huge wave of relief surged over her along with the girls and even Pissard. "That's wonderful..that's so good to hear...I was worried about you for a while."_

_"I'm a Kamen Rider.." he remarked."It's...my job.." His strength having run out completely, he fell to his knees and then onto his side as the tiredness and wounds from the battle finally caught up with him and he felt himself drift off._

_Luminous nearly burst into tears."Chalice? Chalice!" For a moment, fear that he had left them clenched her heart."No..don't leave us..don't leave me.." She felt for a pulse and, surprisingly, it was still there."He..his heart is still beating!"_

_"WHAT?" roared Pissard. How could that be possible? Wounds like those on the warrior's body would kill any average human, if not instantly then very soon. How his heart could still be beating was beyond his understanding, for the time being anyway._

_"We need to get him to my place,now!" ordered Luminous as she took charge, Pissard ran over to help carry him as the girls led the way to Hikari's apartment, ignoring the fact they were basically showing the way to the home of one of their friends. They were too concerned with helping Chalice to care._

_And Pissard would likely forget anyway._

* * *

><p>After what seemed like forever, my eyes finally opened and I found myself staring at the ceiling of Hikari's house. I still could feel the aches in my body even though it wasn't as bad now, but somehow I knew I was gonna be stiff and sore for a while. I looked down as was surprised to see myself back in my human form. "What the?" I glanced to the side and saw my Human Spirit card lying on the coffee table, nearby I saw Hikari sitting on a chair with her eyes closed.<p>

"She must've used the Spirit card on me," I wondered aloud to myself as I propped myself up on one elbow and asked."Hikari?"

Her eyes fluttered open."James?" She shot up at seeing me awake and ran over before hugging me tightly."You had us worried sick, you know that?"

I stared, my mouth gaping at the realization I was being hugged by a fictional character, but then the reality of the situation set in and I winced."Not so tight, bones are still a bit sore."

"Oh," Hikari backed off, cheeks slightly red."Sorry, I'm just so relieved you're ok."

I cracked a smile."Same here," I had to ask."Hey,um, you know how long I was out?"

She seemed to ponder that before answering."Hmm, you been out for at least a couple hours. Akane got back with Hikaru not too long. When she saw you on the couch, I told her you were helping the police look for him and got tired. She just took him to bed not too long ago. Nagisa and Honoka went on home to make sure nobody got worried."

I nodded."I see," I sighed sadly."Hikari...I'm sorry..I couldn't seal the Jack Of Diamonds...he was too strong."

The girl smiled and gently touched my hand."Don't be sorry. You knew how dangerous he was, and you faced him anyways just to save my brother. You risked your life to bring him back home," She looked on the brink of crying."I..don't know how I can ever repay you.."

I placed my own hand on top of hers and shook my head."You don't need to repay me. I was simply doing my job, and I knows how sad you would be if anything happened to your brother."

Hikari's cheeks turned a little redder and she turned her face away."Y-Yes..still, thank you." Seeing her smile made the whole night worth it.

A loud scoff made me snap to attention."If you're done with all the hand-holding and sugar sweetness, maybe we can get down to business?" We turned to a corner of the room where Pissard stood in his human form, back against the wall with his arms folded, a neutral expression on his face."I'd like to have my questions answered before I vomit from all this cuteness."

Wondering just what the heck was going on, I turned to Hikari who looked rather embarassed."Uh...mind telling me why one of your enemies is in your house?"

Hikari seemed rather hesitant at first to tell me."Well..we kinda cut a deal with him. In exchange for helping us find Hikaru, we'd tell him about you and the Undead."

Ok, I had heard some pretty surprising things today, but this one took the cake."You're kidding me..he actually HELPED you?" I turned to Pissard. Who simply shook his head.

"No joke, I wanted information. We cut a deal. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't even consider the idea of aiding them.." At this, his eyes narrowed."You however, are..unique, you wield all that dark power and yet you will not side with your fellow warriors of darkness. It's...strange,really."

I sighed."Even with my powers, I'm a human being. I maybe friends with the emissaries of light but that does not mean I am loyal to the Light. If anything, they either want me dead or brainwash me to serve their cause due to them believing I'm a threat."

"It's sad, but true." admitted Hikari, likely remembering the incident with the Queen.

Pissard simply snickered."Heh, guess your kind and compassionate queen isn't everything she cracked herself up to be,eh?"

"." I snarled, making him jolt and turn to me. "Look, even if the deal is null and void due to not finding Hikaru, I'll still tell you what I know, but in return, you have to forget you ever saw this house. Wipe it from your memory, or just don't tell a soul. So, what will it be?"

The former servant of darkness fumed to himself, obviously caught between a rock and a hard place. I'd had my reasons for making the offer though. The Undead were a danger to everyone. Not just humans or the Pretty Cure, but even the forces of Darkness weren't safe from them. To myself, I held a slim hope that we could work together, at least long enough to seal them all. After that, I didn't much care what they did.

After brooding over my offer for a bit, he nodded begrudgingly."Fair enough, now explain yourself."

With that, I set about telling him the story behind the Undead. Where they came from, why they were created, the ranking system they had, the reason, however twisted it was, for doing what they did. I omitted a few details, like the one about them originally being part of a set of merchandise from my world that had obtained sentience through some trippy gateway trip.

I put special emphasis on the danger they posed. They would fight whoever they wanted, whenever they wanted. I also told him the partially true story of how I acquired the power to become Kamen Rider Chalice, sacrificing part of my humanity in the process by becoming one with the sealed Joker. The white-haired man stood there, fully engrossed in my story.

Once my tale was done, Pissard took a few moments to ponder what he was going to say. From the look on his face, I'd given him a great deal to digest."Very interesting indeed, young man. You had your humanity taken from you and in return was given great power, but instead of joining these "Undead" you chose to fight against them."

I nodded."That's right, I'm not interested in reshaping the world. I only want to stop them before too many lives are lost. I'm not too interested in using my powers for anything else besides that."

Pissard actually snickered and it made me raise an eyebrow."While I'm not too concerned about what becomes of these humans, you are certainly becoming more and more intriguing," He fixed me with a dangerous gaze."Tell you what, you join us, and my master will almost certainly be able to bestow you with even greater power than what you have right now. Sound like a good deal?"

Hikari and I shared a look. No words were needed. I looked to Pissard and shook my head."No deal, I'll fight this battle on my own terms."

The guy's smile automatically vanished as his eyes narrowed into a scowl."Boy, you're making a big mistake. If you don't swear loyalty to my master, we can make your life very difficult, very quickly."

I wasn't backing down."If I do end up having to fight you guys too, so be it, but I will NOT obey whatever dark deity you're working for, and I will NOT betray the friends I have already made and will continue to make!" Hikari's eyes had a small glimmer in them at my words as I stood up, ignoring the pain, and trudged over to the door before swinging it open. "Now please leave, and if I ever find out you've been around here, you'll be hearing from me."

Pissard looked like he wanted to floor me then and there, but somehow, I knew he'd keep to his word. He walked to the door while not bothering to look at me. He stopped for a moment."If you ever come to your senses, the offer still stands." He walked off and vanished into the night.

I shut the door and sat back down beside Hikari."Before I forget," I reached into my pocket and pulled out her hair band."I think this may've saved my life." I placed it in her hand."Thanks again."

She smiled warmly."I'm just glad you came back," The girl looked off to the side."I'm..really happy to know you think of us as your friends."

I shrugged."Well, I think you've earned the right to be called friends," I winced as a sharp jolt went through my shoulder."Darn.."

Hikari shot up and helped me lay down."No more getting up,ok? You need your rest."

Knowing she was right, I sighed tiredly."As if things weren't complicated enough, what with the Undead, now your old enemies are coming back from wherever it is you sent them when they were defeated."

"Yeah," murmured the gal in honesty."When we beat them before, we never thought we'd ever see them again. Guess we were wrong," Suddenly, she shook her head fiercely. "We'll beat them again though, we just have to! We'll never let them consume our world!"

I grinned at her. "That's the girl. You can't lose hope, no matter what."

"But I am curious about something," I looked up at her."Why did you tell Pissard about the Undead?"

I hesitated for a moment before speaking."I..guess I thought I could get him and his group to work with us. I mean, these Undead are a danger to everybody, not just humans. Besides, we'd only have to do it until they were all sealed."

Hikari sighed and shook her head."It's a nice idea, but they'll never go for it. The forces of Darkness have clashed with the Light for eons, and I doubt that's gonna change anytime soon, if ever."

I groaned to myself."Well, it was worth a shot. So, what are we gonna do about that email thing to the other Cures?"

At this, she smiled and pat my shoulder."Don't worry about that right now. We decided we're gonna put it on hold for the time being, at least till you feel better," She pulled a blanket over me."Now get some rest, you've earned it."

For a moment, I was reminded of when I was younger and I got tucked in by my mother."Thanks Hikari, I'll see ya in the morning."

Her smile was as warm as ever."Good night, my warrior of justice." She turned and headed upstairs.

As I lied alone, I began to think. Just when I thought things couldn't get any harder, they did. Not only were I on worse terms than ever with the Queen, but now someone was reviving Pretty Cure's fallen enemies. As if that weren't enough, some of them wanted to recruit me. And as if THAT weren't enough, I get myself curbstomped by one of the Royal Class Undead and have to get saved by another one. I was definitely gonna need to get a lot stronger if I wanted to stand even a chance at beating Isaka the next time we met.

Or find some new ways to use my cards, whichever came first.

The only good things out of this were that the girls were ok, so was Hikaru. Also, I now had some idea of where I was in the timeline. Apparently, this had to be sometime after the second All Stars DX movie, and if Itsuki and Yuri had appeared, this likely meant we were at the end of the Heartcatch season, and well into Suite. "Which means the events of All-Stars DX 3 haven't happened yet."

At least now I'd found a clue. The question was, how would having the Undead and I here change things? I didn't know how long I had before the events of that movie started, so I had to make good use of whatever time I had.

First things first, I needed a nap. I would sort this mess out in the morning.

* * *

><p><em>The Queen sat alone in her room, back to her giantess self, and sighing."I so hoped I could get that boy to join us. But it seems my efforts have done nothing but push him furthur from us."<em>

_Elder nodded sagely."I would not be surprised if he decided to join the legions of darkness and try to get revenge."_

_His ladyship was wary."What's worse, I believe my actions have even casted the shadow of distrust and betrayel on our own warriors. My other self seems to be quite taken with him too," That fact gave her a bit of queasiness. The boy was filled with negative energy and being so close to the girl it would seep over into her at one point, if it hadn't already._

_"It's like no matter what you do, he won't be swayed." inquired Wisdom. He had watched the girls and Chalice leave and had heard much of the conversation. To be truthful,he felt the Queen had been a bit too harsh on the young man, too forceful even, but he knew his place._

_Although that didn't stop his opinion from being heard."Maybe, for now at least, we can just leave him alone," Everyone looked to him."I mean, even if he's not on our side, he's not really against us either. I think he just wants to be by himself, so perhaps leaving him be will help all of us."_

_Elder scoffed."Leave him be? Have you forgotten that for every one of those beasts he seals, he becomes more and more of a danger,Wisdom?"_

_Wisdom had a small scowl on his face."I haven't forgotten,Elder, but I think you're forgetting that he was right here, with the queen, he could've struck her down if he wanted to, but he didn't. He simply warned her to leave him be and went on his way." From his few moments of speaking with Chalice, he got the impression he was a pretty decent guy._

_The old man frowned at the little one."Even if he wanted to, his power is not enough to pose a threat to the Queen, at least for the moment," He looked up to his ruler. "Which is why I suggest we do something about him as soon as possible, before he becomes the end of us all."_

_Wisdom followed suit."No, leave him alone. We've already given him enough reason to hate us. And the only people he's hurt are those monsters, the Undead. I don't think he's as bad as we're making him out to be."_

_"You can't be serious,Wisdom!" exclaimed the Elder."We can't just let him run about, doing what he wants, it's too much of a risk!"_

_"And it's too much of a risk to just lash out against him!" fired back the guardian of the Prism Stones._

_Before the two's argument could get any fiercer, the queen's voice cut in."Enough, both of you." They stopped and looked up to her."While I value your opinions, I will come to a decision on this matter myself. Now, please go."_

_The two watched her for a bit longer then relunctantly turned to go. Before he left, Wisdom turned back."Please Queen..for all our sakes..make the right choice." He walked out, shutting the doors behind him._

_The Queen sat alone, her mind wandered yet she could not tell what to do...was there anything she could do really?_

* * *

><p><em>Pissard stepped out of the portal of swirling shadows and kneeled before his master."I have returned, Lord Black Hole-sama."<em>

_The distorted face appeared before him."Were you successful in your mission?" It demanded with no hint of patience._

_At this, the man bowed his head."In a way, yes. But at the same time,no." Seeing suspicion on his lord's face, he went into detail with his mission. He elaborated on what he found out about Chalice and the strange monsters that had appeared in the human world._

_"Hmm," began Black Hole."This is unexpected indeed, not only are there more like Chalice, but he was once a human being too...but the fact he is not willing to join us is disappointing."_

_"My lord," all eyes turned as another figure materialized from the darkness. This one with a bald head, pale skin and narrowed eyes wearing a white tattered robe. This was Ilkuubo. The Dark King's former right hand man."I suggest a display of power. Once Chalice sees that the power to consume all things is greater than that of the emissaries of Light, he will certainly not hesitate to join us."_

_Pissard frowned as he stood up."He brought my Zakenna to its knees with a single slash, he didn't seem impressed."_

_"Only cause you're weak," cut in another voice as a new figure, a woman, appeared. She had long red hair, pale white skin and dressed in a black body suit. This was Poisonee. "Heck, even Gekidrago lasted longer than you did."_

_"Someone call my name?" growled the big brute as he materialized. "Oh, looks like the whole group is here." Black Hole had managed to use a small portion of his massive power to recall some of the Dark Zone's warriors. It wouldn't be long before their strength returned._

_"A show of power might do the trick," agreed Poisonee, nodding her head."Getting those Precure in the process is only icing on the cake."_

_Black Hole spoke."It is settled than, Gekidrago, gather your strength, for I will soon have need of you."_

_The brute nodded."Sure thing, boss." He turned and vanished into the shadows, the others dispersed as well._

_Black Hole floated in the empty darkness. It materialized an image of Chalice and studied it."Chalice..you will acknowledge the power to consume all things as your master._  
><em>And you will bring darkness to the worlds."<em>

_"It is only a matter...of time."_

* * *

><p>Phew, finally got this chapter done after over a month of mishaps. Yeah, I know, it's pretty long but that's due to a lot of stuff happening. The Queen pulling another stupid move on the gang, the Jack Of Diamonds makes his move, we learn a bit more of where we are in the timeline of the series, and my character gets his butt kicked...badly. If you watched Blade, you know the promise the Jack Of Spades made.<p>

Oh, and we learn that Black Hole and the forces of darkness have plans for Chalice...not good at all. As if my guy didn't have enough on his plate to deal with. Though now they know of the Undead's existance, which should mess things up a little. Also, my character's not always gonna win every battle he gets in, he's not quite ready yet to face the higher level Undead, and by extension, neither are the Cures.

I wanted to give Black Hole more of a personality than just "I am evil! Therefore I will destroy everything! Mwahahahaha!" Hopefully you liked it.

And it seems not everyone in the Garden Of Light totally agress with the Queen's way of viewing things..hmm..

Anyways, not much else to say here but I hope the wait was worth it, and I'll try to have the next chapter out as soon as possible.

Right, so comment and tell me what you think. See ya.


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